JP2021140488A - Paper sheet identification apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

To expand the functionality of a paper sheet identification apparatus by adding units including a sensor.SOLUTION: The paper sheet identification apparatus for acquiring feature information about a paper sheet by a sensor and identifying the paper sheet based on the feature information, includes: a conveyance path that conveys the paper sheet; a main unit that acquires the feature information from the paper sheet by the sensor; one or a plurality of sub-units that acquire feature information, different from the feature information acquired by the main unit, from the paper sheet by the sensor; an attaching/detaching unit that can attach/detach the plurality of sub-units along the conveyance path; and a control unit that executes identification processing of identifying the paper sheet based on the feature information acquired by the main unit and the feature information acquired by the sub-units attached to the attaching/detaching unit, in which the control unit identifies the sub-units attached to the attaching/detaching unit, determines whether or not a type and an attached position of the sub-units are appropriate, and changes processing contents of the identification processing in accordance with the type and the attached position of the sub-units.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a paper leaf identification device for identifying paper leaves.

Conventionally, a device to which a unit prepared as an option can be mounted has been used. By attaching an optional unit to the device, an extended function by the optional unit is added to the basic function of the device. A device equipped with a plurality of optional units operates according to the type of the mounted optional unit. When the operator inputs the information of the installed option unit to the device, the device may not operate correctly if the input is incorrect. In order to correspond to this, the apparatus of Patent Document 1 recognizes the mounting order of the plurality of modules mounted as optional units. By automatically recognizing the option unit by the device, malfunction of the device due to an input error of the operator can be avoided.

Japanese Patent No. 3246817

However, even if the above-mentioned conventional technique is applied to the paper leaf identification device for identifying the paper leaves, the paper leaf identification device may not be able to fully utilize the extended function by the option unit. For example, when a plurality of option units have a suitable mounting order, even if the paper leaf identification device recognizes the mounting order of the option units different from this and starts the paper leaf identification process, the option unit is used. The extended function may not be exhibited.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a paper leaf identification device whose function can be expanded by adding a unit.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the present invention is a paper leaf identification device that acquires characteristic information of paper sheets by a sensor and identifies the paper sheets based on the characteristic information. A transport path for transporting leaves, a main unit that acquires characteristic information from paper leaves by a sensor, one or a plurality of subsystems that acquire characteristic information different from the main unit from paper leaves by a sensor, and the above. The paper leaf is based on the attachment / detachment portion to which a plurality of the subsystems can be attached / detached along the transport path, the feature information acquired by the main unit, and the feature information acquired by the subsystem attached to the attachment / detachment portion. The control unit includes a control unit that executes an identification process for identifying the type, recognizes the subsystem mounted on the attachment / detachment unit, determines the type of the subsystem and the suitability of the mounting position, and determines the suitability of the mounting position. It is characterized in that the processing content of the identification processing is changed according to the type of the subsystem and the mounting position.

Further, in the present invention, in the above invention, the control unit determines whether or not the subunit necessary for identifying the paper leaves is attached based on the type of the paper leaves to be identified. , When it is necessary to additionally mount a subunit, a notification process for notifying this is executed.

Further, in the present invention, in the above invention, the control unit needs to determine the suitability of the subunit mounting position based on the type of the subunit mounted on the attachment / detachment portion, and change the mounting position. In some cases, it is characterized in that a notification process for notifying this is executed.

Further, in the present invention, the detachable portion includes a first attachment position and a second attachment position in which the communication speed with the control unit is different from the first attachment position. The control unit is characterized in that when the subunit to be mounted on the first mounting position is mounted on the second mounting position, the control unit executes a notification process for notifying the second mounting position.

Further, in the present invention, in the above invention, the control unit determines the suitability of the positional relationship of the plurality of subunits based on the types of the plurality of subunits mounted on the attachment / detachment unit, and changes the positional relationship. When it is necessary to do so, it is characterized in that a notification process for notifying this is executed.

Further, in the present invention, in the above invention, the control unit is equipped with a second subunit used in combination with the first subunit based on the type of the first subunit mounted on the attachment / detachment unit. It is characterized in that it is determined whether or not the second subunit is installed, and when the second subunit is not mounted, a notification process for notifying the second subunit is executed.

According to the paper leaf identification device of the present invention, by adding a subsystem capable of acquiring characteristic information different from the main unit to the main unit that acquires feature information from paper sheets, the device related to the identification process The function can be extended.

FIG. 1 is an external view of a bill processing device using the bill identification device according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing the appearance of the bill identification device. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the internal configuration of the bill identification device. FIG. 4 is a block diagram for explaining the outline of the functional configuration of the bill identification device. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining a process in which the bill identification device determines the attached state of the subunit. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a screen example of the operation display unit displayed during the notification process. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example in which the sensor drive unit of the subunit is connected to the sensor control unit in parallel.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the paper leaf identification device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The paper leaf identification device can identify, for example, the type, authenticity, and correctness (damage) of the paper leaf. The type of paper leaf to be identified by the paper leaf identification device is not particularly limited. Examples of the identification target include banknotes, gift certificates, checks, securities, and card media. Further, although it is described as paper leaves for convenience, the material of the paper leaves to be processed by the paper leaf identification device is not particularly limited. Examples of the material include paper, synthetic fiber, and synthetic resin. Hereinafter, the description will be continued by taking a bill identification device for identifying bills as an example.

FIG. 1 is an external view of a bill processing device (paper leaf processing device) 100 that uses the bill identification device (paper leaf identification device) 10 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing the appearance of the bill identification device 10. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the internal configuration of the bill identification device 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, the bill processing device 100 includes a deposit unit 101, a reject unit 102, an operation display unit 103, and an accumulation unit 106. The operation display unit 103 functions as an operation unit for the operator of the bill processing device 100 to input various information. Further, the operation display unit 103 functions as a display unit that displays various information to be notified to the operator. For example, an operator using the bill processing device 100 can operate the operation display unit 103 to change the setting of the identification process, change the setting of the bill processing, and give an instruction regarding the bill processing.

The operator places a plurality of banknotes in a stacked state on the deposit unit 101 and starts banknote processing. The banknotes of the deposit unit 101 are paid out one by one into the housing 110. Inside the housing 110, a transport path 50 is provided to connect the deposit section 101, the reject section 102, and the integration section 106. The banknote 200 drawn out inside the housing 110 is transported along the transport path 50 in the transport direction indicated by the arrows in FIGS. 2 and 3. The bill identification device 10 is provided along the transport path 50. The bill identification device 10 identifies the bill 200 carried along the transport path 50.

The bill 200 that has passed through the bill identification device 10 is conveyed to the reject unit 102 or the accumulation unit 106 based on the identification result. The rejected banknotes are collected in one of the two rejected units 102. The rejected banknotes include banknotes (counterfeit notes) identified as false by the banknote identification device 10 and banknotes (authenticity uncertain tickets) whose authenticity cannot be determined by the banknote identification device 10. For example, fake tickets are accumulated in one of the two reject units 102, and uncertain authenticity tickets are accumulated in the other. The bills (true bills) identified as true by the bill identification device 10 are collected in any of the plurality of collecting units 106. For example, genuine tickets are collected by denomination in a plurality of collecting units 106. Further, for example, the genuine ticket is divided into a severely damaged one (loss ticket) and the other (regular ticket), and the loss ticket is rejected to the reject section 102 or to the accumulation section 106 different from the true ticket. It is also possible to accumulate.

The type of banknotes to be collected in each of the plurality of collecting units 106 can be set in advance. For example, when classifying Japanese banknotes by denomination, it is possible to set the 10,000-yen bill, the 5,000-yen bill, the 2,000-yen bill, and the 1,000-yen bill to be accumulated in separate accumulation units 106. In this case, if foreign banknotes are included in the banknotes placed on the deposit unit 101, the foreign banknotes are not accumulated in the accumulation unit 106 even if they are identified as true banknotes, and are not accumulated in the collection unit 106 and are rejected by the reject unit 102. Will be accumulated in. The bill identification device 10 is configured so that the bills collected in the collecting unit 106 can be used as the bills to be identified, and a subunit 40 that can be used for the identification processing of the bills to be identified can be added.

The configuration of the bill identification device 10 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the bill identification device 10 includes a main unit 20, a detachable portion 15 to which a plurality of subunits 40 (40a, 40b, 40c, 40d ...) can be attached and detached, and each subunit 40. It includes a subunit control unit 30 for controlling. The banknotes 200 taken into the transport path 50 inside the housing 110 from the deposit section 101 of the bill processing device 100 are transported from the upstream as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, and are inside the main unit 20 and the subunit 40. Pass through. The bill identification device 10 uses the main unit 20 and the subunit 40 to acquire various characteristic information from the bill 200 transported along the transport path 50. The bill identification device 10 executes the identification processing of the bill 200 based on the feature information acquired by the main unit 20 and the feature information acquired by the subunit 40. The bill 200 identified by the bill identification device 10 is transported further downstream of the subunit 40 along the transport path 50. The banknotes 200 will be accumulated in the reject unit 102 or the accumulation unit 106 based on the identification result. In addition, the upstream and the downstream referred to in this embodiment are the directions when the transport direction of the banknote 200 indicated by the arrow in FIGS. 2 and 3 is regarded as a flow.

As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of subunits 40 are mounted at the mounting positions provided on the attachment / detachment portion 15. The plurality of subunits 40 are mounted on the attachment / detachment portion 15 in a state of being arranged in a row in the transport direction. A subunit 40 arbitrarily selected from a plurality of types of subunits 40 can be mounted at each mounting position of the attachment / detachment portion 15. The operator can select the number and type of subunits 40 according to the bill to be identified, and attach the selected subunits 40 to the attachment / detachment unit 15. Although four subunits 40 are shown in FIG. 2, the number of subunits 40 mounted on the attachment / detachment portion 15 is not particularly limited, and the number of subunits 40 may be three or less, or five. It may be the above.

The bill identification device 10 recognizes the type and device position of each subunit 40 mounted. The bill identification device 10 changes the content of the identification process according to the type and mounting position of the attached subunit 40. For example, when a subunit 40 for measuring the thickness of a bill 200 using an ultrasonic sensor is attached, the bill identification device 10 uses the thickness measured by the subunit 40 to identify the bill 200. Change the processing content of the identification process to. The type of subunit 40 used for the identification process and the mounting position of each subunit 40 are set according to the bill to be identified. Based on this setting, the bill identification device 10 determines whether or not the attached state of the subunit 40 is suitable for the bill identification process and notifies the determination result, but the details will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 3, a timing sensor 21, a line sensor 22, a thickness detection sensor 23, and a magnetic sensor 24 are provided in the main unit 20. A transport roller 51 for transporting the banknotes 200 along the transport path 50 is also provided in the main unit 20. The transport roller 51 includes a plurality of rollers that are vertically opposed to each other with the transport path 50 in between. When the subunit 40 is attached to the attachment / detachment portion 15 and the bill processing is started, the transfer roller 51 is rotationally driven by a drive portion (not shown). The banknote 200 is transported along the transport path 50 by the rotary drive transport roller 51.

The timing sensor 21 detects the bill 200 being conveyed along the transport path 50. Based on the detection result by the timing sensor 21 and the transport speed of the bill 200 in the transport path 50, the timing at which the main unit 20 and the subunit 40 start various measurements for acquiring the feature information of the bill 200 is determined. .. The line sensor 22 irradiates the banknote 200 with light to measure the optical characteristics and generate a banknote image. The line sensor 22 is configured to be capable of measuring the entire surface of the banknote 200. For example, the line sensor 22 can generate a reflected image of the entire front surface of the banknote 200, a reflected image of the entire back surface, and a transmitted image of the entire surface. The thickness detection sensor 23 measures the thickness of the bill 200. The magnetic sensor 24 measures the magnetic characteristics of the bill 200. The thickness detection sensor 23 and the magnetic sensor 24 are also configured to be capable of measuring the entire surface of the bill 200. Since the banknote identification process using these sensors 21 to 24 is conventionally known, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 3, the subunit 40 includes subunits 40a to 40c including sensors 60a to 60c inside, and subunit 40d including only the transfer roller 51 without the sensor. The transport roller 51 of the subunit 40d is also rotationally driven by a drive unit (not shown) during bill processing, and the bill 200 is transported by the transport roller 51.

The bill identification device 10 can also perform the identification process using only the main unit 20 in a state where only the subunit 40d, which does not include the sensor 60, is mounted at all the mounting positions of the attachment / detachment portion 15. For example, when the banknote to be identified is changed and it becomes necessary to add three sensors 60a to 60c to the banknote identification process, the operator uses the sensors 60a to 60c as shown in FIG. Three subunits 40a to 40c including the same are attached to the attachment / detachment portion 15. When the subunit 40 having the sensor 60 is attached to the attachment / detachment portion 15, the bill identification device 10 can use the sensor 60 of the subunit 40 for the identification process.

The type and number of sensors 60 included in each subunit 40 are not particularly limited. For example, there are a subunit 40 that irradiates a bill 200 with ultrasonic waves to measure the thickness, and a subunit 40 that measures the thickness based on the capacitance of the bill 200. Further, there is a subunit 40 that measures the optical characteristics of the banknote 200 by irradiating light of a type different from that of the line sensor 22. Further, there is a subunit 40 that detects a hologram and OVI ink (Optical Variable Ink) by changing the angle of light shining on the bill 200 or the angle of receiving the light reflected by the bill 200. Further, there is a subunit 40 in which a current is passed through the bill 200 to measure the electrical characteristics. Further, there are a subunit 40 that measures fluorescence emission by irradiating a bill 200 with a predetermined excitation light, a subunit 40 that measures phosphorescence emission, and a subunit 40 that measures both fluorescence emission and phosphorescence emission. .. Further, there is a subunit 40 that measures the transmission characteristics by irradiating a banknote with a predetermined electromagnetic wave such as a terahertz wave.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram for explaining the outline of the functional configuration of the bill identification device 10. Each of the sensors 21 to 24 of the main unit 20 is connected to a control unit 25 provided in the main unit 20. Although not shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 25 is communicably connected to the control unit of the banknote processing device 100. The control unit 25 acquires information about the banknote to be identified from the control unit of the banknote processing device 100. The control unit 25 executes the identification process by using the main unit 20 and the subunit 40 based on the acquired information. The control unit of the bill processing device 100 acquires information related to the identification result of the bill 200 from the control unit 25 and determines the destination of the bill 200. Each banknote that has passed through the banknote identification device 10 in this way is accumulated in the reject unit 102 or the accumulation unit 106.

The control unit 25 controls each of the sensors 21 to 24 of the main unit 20. The control unit 25 controls the measurement timing by the sensors 22 to 24 based on the detection result of the bill 200 by the timing sensor 21. The control unit 25 acquires the feature information of the banknote 200 from the measurement results of the sensors 22 to 24. At this time, various signal processing such as amplification of signals output from each sensor 22 to 24, noise removal, A / D conversion (digitization), imaging, and image correction are performed as necessary.

The sub-sensor control unit 30 includes a sensor control unit 35 connected to the control unit 25 of the main unit 20 by a line 71. The subunits 40a to 40c including the sensors 60a to 60c include a sensor driving unit 65 (65a to 65c) for driving the sensors 60a to 60c. The sensor control unit 35 and the plurality of sensor drive units 65 are connected by a line 71. When there is a subunit 40d that does not include the sensor 60, the subunits 40 on both sides adjacent to each other are connected by a line 71.

The sensor control unit 35 recognizes the type and mounting position of the subunit 40 mounted on the attachment / detachment unit 15 by transmitting and receiving signals to and from the sensor drive unit 65 of each subunit 40 via the line 71. The recognition result by the sensor control unit 35 is transmitted to the control unit 25 of the main unit 20. The control unit 25 executes a determination process for determining the suitability of the type of subunit 40 and the mounting position, the details of which will be described later.

The control unit 25 of the main unit 20 uses each of the sensors 21 to 24 of the main unit 20 to acquire various characteristic information from the banknotes 200 transported along the transport path 50, and each of them is obtained via the sensor control unit 35. It controls the sensor 60 of the subunit 40.

The sensor control unit 35, which receives a measurement command from the control unit 25, controls the sensor drive unit 65 of each subunit 40 to execute the measurement. The sensor drive unit 65 of each subunit 40 drives the sensor 60 to perform various measurements, and acquires characteristic information of the banknote 200 transported along the transport path 50. The feature information acquired by the subunit 40 is transmitted to the sensor control unit 35 via the line 71, and is transmitted from the sensor control unit 35 to the control unit 25 of the main unit 20. The control unit 25 uses the feature information obtained by the sensor 60 of the subunit 40 for the identification process.

The identification process is performed by comparing the feature information acquired from the bill 200 with a template prepared in advance corresponding to the feature information. For example, the control unit 25 compares the image of the bill 200 with the image prepared in the template. Further, for example, the control unit 25 compares the measured value obtained from the bill 200 with the threshold value prepared in the template. The control unit 25 identifies the denomination and authenticity of the banknote 200 according to the comparison result between the feature information obtained from the banknote 200 and the template. The control unit 25 may further identify the positive or loss of the bill 200. Since the process of identifying banknotes using a template is conventionally known, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

For example, the control unit 25 executes the identification process using both the feature information obtained by the sensors 22 to 24 of the main unit 20 and the feature information obtained by the sensor 60 of the subunit 40, and executes the identification process of the banknote 200. Determine the identification result.

Further, for example, the control unit 25 executes the identification process based on the feature information obtained by the sensors 22 to 24 of the main unit 20, and obtains the identification result of the bill 200. Further, the control unit 25 executes the identification process based on the feature information obtained by the sensor 60 of the subunit 40, and obtains the identification result of the banknote 200. The control unit 25 finally determines the identification result of the banknote 200 based on the identification result obtained by using the main unit 20 and the identification result obtained by using the subunit 40.

Specifically, for example, the control unit 25 executes identification processing based on the feature information obtained by the main unit 20, and in the denomination of the bill 200, the front and back and top and bottom directions, and the transport path 50 width direction. Identify the transport position. Based on the denomination of the bill 200, the feature information used for authenticity identification of the bill of the denomination is determined. Subsequently, the control unit 25 executes the measurement by the subunit 40 in order to acquire the feature information used for the authenticity identification. For example, when the feature information is obtained from a predetermined area of the bill 200, the subunit 40 executes the measurement based on the direction and the transport position of the bill 200 specified by the main unit 20 and acquires the target feature information. .. The control unit 25 executes an identification process based on the feature information obtained by the subunit 40 to identify the authenticity of the banknote 200. The control unit 25 determines the denomination and authenticity of the banknote 200 based on the denomination identification result obtained by using the main unit 20 and the authenticity identification result obtained by using the subunit 40. To make the final decision. For example, even if the identification process by the main unit 20 identifies it as a 1000-yen note, if the subunit 40 identifies it as a fake note, the paper sheets are finally identified as not being banknotes. Will be done.

As shown in FIG. 4, a line 72 directly connected to the control unit 25 can be used at a part of the attachment / detachment unit 15. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the subunit 40b mounting position and the subunit 40d mounting position are mounting positions where the line 72 can be used. The subunit 40b can communicate with the main unit 20 using the line 71, or can directly communicate with the main unit 20 using the line 72.

The sub-unit 40, which needs to communicate with the main unit 20 at high speed, is mounted at a mounting position where the line 72 can be used. Based on the measurement result of the main unit 20 or another subunit 40, the subunit 40 whose measurement content changes is mounted at a mounting position capable of high-speed communication.

For example, when it is necessary to change the measurement position of the subunit 40 by the sensor 60 according to the outer shape of the banknote 200 obtained by the main unit 20 and the position in the transport path width direction, the subunit 40 is mounted so as to be capable of high-speed communication. It is installed in the position. Further, for example, when the measurement result obtained by the subunit 40 is processed by the control unit 25 and there is a subunit 40 whose measurement content is changed according to the result of this processing, both of these two subunits 40. Or, the subunit 40 that executes the measurement first is mounted at a mounting position capable of high-speed communication.

For example, it is preferable that the subunit 40, which measures the thickness of the bill 200 using an ultrasonic sensor, is mounted at a mounting position capable of high-speed communication. When a measurement is performed by an ultrasonic sensor at the edge of the banknote 200, a part of the ultrasonic wave is irradiated to the outside of the banknote surface to generate noise, and an accurate measurement result may not be obtained. Therefore, the subunit 40 is set to perform measurement at the central portion of the bill except for the outer peripheral portion of the bill having a predetermined width according to the performance of the ultrasonic sensor. Since the shape of a banknote cannot be specified by an ultrasonic sensor, the subunit 40 uses the position information of the banknote 200 on the transport path 50 obtained by the line sensor 22 of the main unit 20. Specifically, the subunit 40 measures the central portion of the bill 200 with an ultrasonic sensor based on the transport position of the bill 200 in the transport path width direction, the transport distance from the main unit 20 to the subunit 40, and the transport speed. The timing of passing through the region is specified and the measurement is performed. In this way, the subunit 40 that executes the measurement using the information obtained by the main unit 20 is mounted at the mounting position where high-speed communication is possible.

FIG. 4 shows one line 72 directly connected to the control unit 25, but the number of lines 72 is not limited. Two or more lines 72 may be provided depending on the size of the bill identification device 10 and the bill processing device 100. The number of mounting positions that can be connected to the line 72 is also not particularly limited.

Regarding the method of using the line 72, the line 72 is provided at a part of the mounting position of the attachment / detachment portion 15, and by mounting the subunit 40 at this mounting position, the subunit 40 can use the line 72. Not limited. For example, in the subunit 40, there are a subunit 40 having a connecting wire for connecting to the line 72 and a subunit 40 not having a connecting wire, and if the subunit 40 having a connecting wire is attached to the attachment / detachment portion 15, The line 72 may be available regardless of the mounting position. In this case, the subunit 40 that requires high-speed communication is configured to have a connecting line, so that the line 72 can be used simply by attaching the subunit 40 to the attachment / detachment portion 15.

A process performed by the bill identification device 10 by recognizing the type and mounting position of the subunit 40 will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining a process of determining the attachment state of the subunit 40 by the bill identification device 10. When the operator attaches the subunit 40 to the attachment / detachment unit 15 and performs a predetermined operation indicating this on the operation display unit 103, the control unit 25 confirms the attachment state of the subunit 40 (step S1).

Specifically, the control unit 25 is equipped with subunits 40 at all attachment / detachment positions of the attachment / detachment unit 15, and can convey bills arriving from the upstream of the bill identification device 10 to the downstream of the bill identification device 10. Make sure you are there. Further, the control unit 25 recognizes the type and mounting position of each subunit 40 mounted. That is, the control unit 25 recognizes the mounting order of the plurality of subunits 40. The control unit 25 determines whether or not there is a problem in the mounted state of the recognized subunit 40 (step S2).

The sensor 60 of the subunit 40 may perform the measurement by using the information of the banknote obtained by the main unit 20. The banknotes are being conveyed in the transport path 50 until the information required for the measurement of the subunit 40 is obtained from the values measured by the sensors 22 to 24 of the main unit 20. Therefore, the bill may pass through one or more mounting positions adjacent to the sub-sensor control unit 30 before the necessary information is obtained. In such a case, the control unit 25 specifies a position where the banknotes reach until the necessary information is obtained by the main unit 20 based on the banknote transport speed. The control unit 25 determines whether or not the subunit 40 is mounted at a position where measurement can be performed by using the information obtained by the main unit 20 based on the arrival position of the bill. If there is a problem with the subunit 40 mounting position (step S2; No), the control unit 25 executes a notification process instructing the subunit 40 to move to the downstream side (step S3).

Since it takes time to process the feature information obtained by the subsystem 40, the control unit 25 may want to acquire the feature information from the subsystem 40 as soon as possible. In such a case, the control unit 25 determines whether or not the subunit 40 can be moved to a mounting position on the upstream side. For example, when the subunit 40 can be moved to the upstream side by replacing it with another subunit 40 (step S2; No), the control unit 25 executes a notification process instructing the subunit 40 to move to the upstream side. (Step S3).

For example, since it takes time to obtain a determination result, the subunit 40 for measuring fluorescence emission and phosphorescence emission is preferably mounted at a position as upstream as possible of the attachment / detachment portion 15. With regard to fluorescent light emission, the presence or absence of fluorescent light emission can be determined by performing measurement while irradiating the banknote with light from the light source. On the other hand, with regard to phosphorescence emission, after stopping the irradiation of light from the light source, the emission intensity that gradually weakens is measured a plurality of times to obtain an attenuation waveform of the emission intensity, and the presence or absence of phosphorescence emission based on the attenuation characteristic of the emission intensity. It takes time to obtain the judgment result because the judgment is made. The subunit 40, which takes time to acquire the feature information and obtain the determination result regarding the feature information in this way, is mounted at a position as upstream as possible of the detachable portion 15.

Depending on the feature information obtained by the first subunit 40, the feature information acquired by the second subunit 40 may be changed or the measurement method of the feature information may be changed. In such a case, the control unit 25 determines the suitability of the positional relationship between the two subunits 40. When there is a problem with the positional relationship (step S2; No), the control unit 25 executes a notification process instructing the operator to change the positional relationship between the two subunits 40 (step S3). Specifically, when the second subunit 40 is mounted on the upstream side of the first subunit 40, the control unit 25 executes a notification process instructing to replace these subunits 40.

Depending on the type of banknote to be identified, a subunit 40 including a predetermined sensor 60 may be required for the identification process. In such a case, the control unit 25 acquires information on the banknote to be identified from the banknote processing device 100 and confirms the presence or absence of the subunit 40 required for the banknote identification process. When there is a subunit 40 required for the identification process, the control unit 25 determines whether or not the subunit 40 is attached to the attachment / detachment unit 15. When the required subunit 40 is not attached to the attachment / detachment unit 15 (step S2; No), the control unit 25 executes a notification process instructing the attachment / detachment unit 40 to be attached (step S3).

For example, in order to use the first subunit 40, it may be necessary to measure with the second subunit 40 in advance. In such a case, the control unit 25 determines whether or not the first subunit 40 and the second subunit 40 are mounted in a predetermined positional relationship. When the first subunit 40 is mounted but the second subunit 40 is not mounted (step S2; No), the control unit 25 has a second subunit 40 on the upstream side of the first subunit 40. A notification process for instructing the subunit 40 to be mounted is executed (step S3).

Information necessary for the determination process by the control unit 25 is stored in a storage unit of the main unit 20 (not shown). For example, for each type of banknote to be identified, information indicating the type of subunit 40 that can be used for the banknote identification process is stored in the storage unit. Further, for example, for each type of subunit 40, information indicating the mounting position of the attachment / detachment portion 15 to which the subunit 40 can be mounted is stored in the storage unit. When it is necessary to mount another subunit 40 together at the time of mounting, the type of subunit 40 required and the information indicating the positional relationship with the mounting position of this subunit 40 are stored in the storage unit. There is. The control unit 25 refers to the information stored in the storage unit based on the type of subunit 40 mounted on the attachment / detachment unit 15, and executes the determination process as described above. In addition, the control unit 25 executes a notification process for notifying the operator of the result of the determination process.

The notification process by the control unit 25 is performed by using the operation display unit 103 of the bill processing device 100. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a screen example of the operation display unit 103 displayed during the notification process. When it is necessary to change the mounting position of the subunit 40, as shown in FIG. 6, information indicating the subunit 40 for which the mounting position needs to be changed, information indicating the destination of the subunit 40, and the subunit Information instructing the operator to move the 40 is displayed on the operation display unit 103.

When the operator who received the notification in step S3 changes the mounting state of the subunit 40 based on the notification content, the control unit 25 reconfirms the mounting state of the subunit 40 after the change (step S1). When it is confirmed that there is no problem in the mounted state (step S2; Yes), the control unit 25 determines the control method of the sensors 22 to 24 of the main unit 20 and the subunit 40 based on the type of banknote to be identified. The control method of each sensor 60 of the above is set (step S4). For example, the control unit 25 is set to perform measurement according to the characteristic information of Japanese banknotes by the sensors 22 to 24 and 60 when identifying Japanese banknotes, and each sensor 22 to 24 when identifying US banknotes. , 60 is set to perform measurement according to the characteristic information of US banknotes.

The control unit 25 sets a control method for the sensors 22 to 24 of the main unit 20 and a control method for each sensor 60 of the subunit 40 based on the specifications of the banknote processing device 100 (step S4). For example, the control unit 25 sets the measurement timing by the sensors 22 to 24, 60 according to the transport speed in the transport path 50 of the bill processing device 100.

The control unit 25 confirms that the subunit 40 is in a mounted state suitable for the identification process, sets the main unit 20 and the subunit 40 to the settings suitable for the identification process, and ends the process shown in FIG. After that, the banknote processing device 100 starts the banknote processing, and the banknote identification device 10 executes the identification process using the main unit 20 and the subunit 40. As a result, the bill identification device 10 can fully exert the extended function of the subunit 40 to discriminate bills in detail.

In the present embodiment, an example has been described in which the bill identification device 10 uses the main unit 20 to identify the denomination of the bill and then uses the subunit 40 to identify the authenticity of the bill. The usage mode of the unit 20 and the subunit 40 is not limited to this. For example, even if the bill identification device 10 uses the main unit 20 to identify the denomination and authenticity of the bill, and the subunit 40 to perform additional identification related to the authenticity of the bill. good. Further, the bill identification device 10 may be in a mode in which the main unit 20 is used to identify the denomination and authenticity of the bill, and the subunit 40 is used to identify the correctness or loss of the bill.

The main unit 20 can identify the denomination, authenticity and positive loss of banknotes. The identification result of the denomination of the banknote obtained in the main unit 20 is used to acquire the characteristic information of the banknote in the subunit 40. It may be an embodiment in which the identification result of at least one of the losses is obtained.

When it becomes necessary to acquire the characteristic information of a banknote that cannot be obtained by the main unit 20 in order to identify at least one of the denomination, authenticity, and positive / loss of the banknote, the characteristic information can be acquired. Banknote identification processing is performed using the subunit 40. Therefore, the subunit 40 may be used to obtain at least one identification result of the denomination, authenticity, and positive / loss of the banknote.

In the present embodiment, the main unit 20 includes a timing sensor 21, a line sensor 22, a thickness detection sensor 23, and a magnetic sensor 24, but the configuration of the main unit 20 is not limited to this. For example, the main unit 20 may include only the timing sensor 21 and the line sensor 22. In this case, the subunit 40 including the thickness detection sensor 23 and the subunit 40 including the magnetic sensor 24 may be separately prepared, and if necessary, these subunits 40 may be attached to the detachable portion 15 for use. good.

In the present embodiment, the subunit 40 is mounted on the downstream side of the main unit 20 in the transport direction indicated by the arrows in FIGS. 2 and 3, but the mounting position of the subunit 40 is limited to this. is not it. The detachable portion 15 may be configured such that one or more subunits 40 can be detached on the upstream side of the main unit 20.

In FIG. 4 of the present embodiment, the sensor control unit 35 is provided in the sub-sensor control unit 30, but the main unit 20 may include the sensor control unit 35, and the control unit 25 may be a sensor. The mode may also serve as the function of the control unit 35.

In FIG. 4 of the present embodiment, the main unit 20 and all the subunits 40 are communicably connected by a line 71, and the main unit 20 and some subunits 40 are communicated by another line 72. Although the mode in which the connection is possible is shown, the connection mode is not limited to this. For example, the bill identification device 10 may be in a mode that does not have a line 72.

Further, the mode is not limited to the mode in which the sensor control unit 35 and the sensor drive unit 65 of the subunit 40 are serially connected, and may be a mode in which they are connected in parallel. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example in which the sensor drive unit 65 of the subunit 40 is connected to the sensor control unit 35 in parallel. In order to miniaturize the bill identification device 10, it is preferable to use a serial connection as shown in FIG. 4, but by using a parallel connection as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 25 and each sensor drive unit 65 are used. Communication with and can be speeded up.

As described above, in the bill identification device 10, by attaching the subunit 40 including the sensor 60 to the attachment / detachment portion 15, identification processing using the sensors 21 to 24 of the main unit 20 and the sensors 60 of the subunit 40 is performed. Can be executed. For example, by adding the subunit 40, the identification function of the bill identification device 10 can be expanded.

The bill identification device 10 recognizes the type and mounting position of the subunits 40 mounted on the attachment / detachment unit 15 and executes a determination process for determining the suitability of the mounting state of each subunit 40. Based on the determination result, the bill identification device 10 can execute a notification process for prompting a change in the type of subunit 40 to be mounted and a notification process for prompting a change in the mounting position. By changing the mounting state of the subunit 40 by the notified operator, the bill identification device 10 can be used for the identification process by exerting the original performance of the subunit 40.

As described above, the paper leaf identification device according to the present invention is useful for expanding the function of the paper leaf identification device by adding a unit.

10 Banknote identification device 15 Detachable unit 20 Main unit 21 to 24, 60 (60a to 60c) Sensor 25 Control unit 30 Sub sensor control unit 35 subunit control unit 40 (40a to 40d) Sub unit 50 Transport path 65 Sensor drive unit 71, 72 Line 100 Banknote processing device 101 Deposit unit 102 Reject unit 103 Operation display unit 106 Accumulation unit

Claims (6)

It is a paper leaf identification device that acquires the characteristic information of paper leaves by a sensor and identifies the paper leaves based on the characteristic information.
A transport path for transporting paper leaves and
The main unit that acquires feature information from paper sheets using sensors, and
One or more subunits that acquire characteristic information different from the main unit from paper sheets by a sensor,
A detachable portion to which a plurality of the subunits can be attached and detached along the transport path, and
It is provided with a control unit that executes an identification process for identifying the paper sheets based on the feature information acquired by the main unit and the feature information acquired by the subunit attached to the attachment / detachment unit.
The control unit recognizes the subunit mounted on the attachment / detachment unit, determines the suitability of the subunit type and mounting position, and processes the identification process according to the subunit type and mounting position. A paper leaf identification device characterized by changing the contents. The control unit needs to determine whether or not the subunit necessary for identifying the paper sheets is attached based on the type of the paper sheet to be identified, and additionally attach the subunit. The paper leaf identification device according to claim 1, wherein a notification process for notifying the case is executed. The control unit determines the suitability of the mounting position of the subunit based on the type of the subunit mounted on the attachment / detachment unit, and when it is necessary to change the mounting position, a notification for notifying this. The paper leaf identification device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the processing is performed. The attachment / detachment portion includes a first attachment position and a second attachment position in which the communication speed with the control unit is different from that of the first attachment position.
3. The control unit is characterized in that when the subunit to be mounted on the first mounting position is mounted on the second mounting position, the control unit executes a notification process for notifying the second mounting position. The paper leaf identification device described in 1. The control unit determines the suitability of the positional relationship of the plurality of subunits based on the types of the plurality of subunits mounted on the attachment / detachment unit, and notifies this when it is necessary to change the positional relationship. The paper leaf identification device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a notification process for performing the notification is executed. The control unit determines whether or not a second subunit used in combination with the first subunit is mounted based on the type of the first subunit mounted on the detachable portion, and determines whether or not the second subunit is mounted. The paper leaf identification device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein when a subunit is not mounted, a notification process for notifying the subunit is executed.

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