JP2716421B2 - Card feeding device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a card supply device used for supplying cards in a prepaid card vending machine or the like, and more particularly to a card supply device capable of supplying a plurality of types of cards having different thicknesses.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional card supply device used for supplying a card in a prepaid card vending machine or the like is as follows.
As disclosed in JP-A-2-215622, a card is charged into a card cassette in which the position of a partition plate is adjusted so as to be adapted to the thickness of the card to be supplied, and the card cassette is inserted into a card ejection mechanism. A method is adopted in which the device is attached to a main body. Therefore, in order to supply a plurality of types of cards having different thicknesses, prepare a plurality of card cassettes in which the positions of the partition plates are adjusted so as to be adapted to the respective thicknesses, and exchange those card cassettes to obtain a main body. Must be attached to

[0003]

As described above, in order to supply a plurality of types of cards having different thicknesses, the conventional card supply device requires a plurality of cards adjusted to fit each thickness. Since the card cassette must be prepared, storage and management of the card cassette are troublesome and costly, and there is a disadvantage that the operation of the card cassette is troublesome due to the necessity of replacing the card cassette. .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks of the conventional card supply device, to provide an easy-to-operate and low-cost card supply device which does not require storage, management or replacement of a card cassette. It is to provide a device.

[0005]

According to the present invention, there is provided a card supply device comprising: a card hopper for stacking and holding a plurality of cards; and a lowermost card of the plurality of cards stacked on the card hopper. A discharge roller for discharging, and a thickness adjusting unit having a plurality of surfaces and changing a relative position so that any one of the plurality of surfaces can face a transport path for guiding the travel of the card. The distance between the card outlets, which is the distance between each of the plurality of surfaces and the transport path, is set to an interval corresponding to the thickness of each of the plurality of types of cards discharged by the discharge roller. In particular, the number of surfaces of the thickness adjusting portion is two or three.

[0006]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 shows a state when a thick card is supplied, and FIG.
FIG. 14 is a front view showing a state when a thin card is supplied in the embodiment.

The card supply device 1 shown in FIG. 1 contacts a card hopper 2 for stacking and holding a plurality of cards and a lowermost card of the plurality of cards stacked on the card hopper 2 to rotate. Discharge roller 3 that discharges in the direction of arrow E, and the front of the card hopper 2 (card discharge direction).
And a thickness adjuster 4 that adjusts the interval between the card ejection openings by changing the relative position with respect to the card ejected by the 90-degree rotation operation.

When a thick card such as a cash card is supplied by the card supply device 1 constructed as described above, as shown in FIG. 1, a thick card 5a is loaded, filled into the card hopper 2, and discharged. The roller 3 is rotated in the direction of arrow F. Due to the rotational movement of the discharge roller 3, the lowest card in the card hopper 2 which is in contact with the discharge roller 3 is sent out in the direction of arrow E, and the thickness adjusting unit 4 and the conveyance path 7 for guiding the running of the card. Card outlet 6 between
a to be supplied to the next step. At this time, the thickness adjusting unit 4 has been rotated 90 degrees in the direction of arrow A from the state of FIG. 2, the right side surface 4a thereof is parallel to the transport path 7, and the distance C between the card discharge ports 6a is C. Is an interval corresponding to the thickness of one card 5a. Therefore, only one card 5a fed by the discharge roller 3 passes through the card discharge port 6a.

When a thin card such as a telephone card is supplied by the card supply device 1, as shown in FIG. 2, the thickness adjusting section 4 is rotated 90 degrees in the direction of arrow B from the state of FIG. 4b is made parallel to the transport path 7. At this time, the interval D between the card outlets 6b is a narrow interval corresponding to the thickness of one card 5b. In this state, the card hopper 2 is filled with the thin card 5b and the discharge roller 3 is rotated in the direction of arrow F.
The lowermost card in the card hopper 2 that is in contact with the card is sent out in the direction of arrow E, and is supplied to the next process through the narrow card outlet 6b between the thickness adjusting unit 4 and the transport path 7. .

In the above-described embodiment, the number of surfaces of the thickness adjustment unit facing the transport path is set to two, and one card supply device uses two.
It is designed to be able to supply cards of different thicknesses, but a third surface is provided between the right side and the lower surface, and when the third surface is opposed to the conveyance path, the distance between the card outlets is set. Is set to the third interval, so that one card supply device can supply cards of three different thicknesses. Similarly, it is easy to supply cards of various thicknesses.

[0012]

As described above, the card supply device of the present invention has a plurality of surfaces in front of the card hopper for adjusting the distance between the card outlets by changing the distance from the transport path by rotating the card. By providing a thickness adjustment unit having a thickness adjustment unit corresponding to the thickness of the card filled in the card supply device and setting the interval between the card ejection openings to an interval suitable for the card, one unit The present invention has the effect that cards of various thicknesses can be supplied by the card supply device of the present invention, and therefore, a card supply device that is easy to operate and inexpensive, and that does not require storage, management and replacement of the card cassette is obtained. There is an effect that it can be.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention, and is a diagram showing a state when a thick card is supplied.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a state when a thin card is supplied in the embodiment of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Card supply device 2 Card hopper 3 Discharge roller 4 Thickness adjustment part 4a Right side surface 4b Bottom surface 5a / 5b Card 6a / 6b Card discharge port 7 Transport path

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A card hopper for stacking and holding a plurality of cards, a discharge roller for discharging the lowest card of the plurality of cards stacked on the card hopper, and a plurality of surfaces. A thickness adjustment unit that can make any one of the plurality of surfaces face a conveyance path that guides the travel of the card by changing a relative position; and A card supply device, wherein a distance between a card discharge port, which is a distance from a conveyance path, and a distance corresponding to a thickness of each of a plurality of types of cards discharged by the discharge roller is set. 2. The card supply device according to claim 1, wherein the number of surfaces of the thickness adjusting section is two. 3. The card supply device according to claim 1, wherein the number of surfaces of the thickness adjusting section is three.