JP3086400B2 - Automatic change machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic change machine used in connection with a cash register.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in various stores, an automatic change machine connected to a cash register is sometimes used in order to facilitate the transfer of money between a cashier and a customer and to improve workability at the time of settlement. is there. FIG. 5 shows a conventional example of such an automatic change machine. A coin insertion slot 2 for inserting coins is provided on a cashier side of the automatic change machine mounted on a counter table 1. On the upper side of the customer, a change receiver 3 on which money to be paid by the customer and a change to be received by the customer are provided is prepared. Also,
On the cashier side of the automatic change machine, a change outlet 4 for discharging change by coins is formed.

[0003] As a procedure at the time of settlement using such an automatic change machine, first, when the total price of the purchased goods is displayed on the display section of the cash register, the customer who sees the display receives the change. Put money for payment in 3. At this time, the amount of money put on the change receipt 3 by the customer at this time may be equal to the displayed total amount or may be larger than the displayed total amount. The type of currency that the customer places on the change receptacle 3 includes only banknotes, only coins, and a mixture of banknotes and coins.

[0004] The cashier confirms the amount of money put on the change receiving tray 3 and stores the amount in the cash register.
Then, if there is a difference between the set amount and the total amount, the difference is displayed on the display unit as a change amount. Then, a signal of an amount of less than 1,000 yen out of the difference is output to the automatic change machine, and an amount of less than 1,000 yen to be paid by a coin is discharged to a coin outlet 4.

[0005] The cashier stores banknotes among the money paid by the customer in the drawer of the cash register, and inserts coins into the coin slot 1. Further, when there is a change, the cashier takes out the change of the bill from the drawer, takes out the change of the coin from the change take-out port 4, puts the change on the change receiver 3 and hands it to the customer.

Therefore, when the cashier's work at the time of settlement is compared with the case where the automatic changer is not used, coins paid by the customer are sorted by type and stored in a coin case in a drawer, and change by coins is changed by a coin. Work for taking out of the case is not required, and workability at the time of settlement is improved.

[0007]

However, the customer must pick up the coin placed on the change receiving tray 3 and insert it into the coin insertion slot 2. In this picking up, the coin may fail to be gripped and dropped. . In addition, change receipt 3 and coin slot 2
The coins may be dropped while the coins are being conveyed from the change receptacle 3 to the coin slot 2 because they are separated from each other. Further, when a coin is inserted into the coin slot 2, the coin may fall off the coin slot 2. Therefore, change receiving 3
The operation of inserting coins in the coin insertion slot 2 is a delicate operation for the cashier.

Further, since the coin slot 2 is always open, there is a risk that foreign matter such as a clip may enter from the coin slot 2 and cause a failure.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The automatic change machine of the present invention comprises:
A coin slot for inserting coins, a coin storage section for storing coins inserted from the coin slot for each type, and a required number of various coins stored in the coin storage section for each type. In an automatic change machine having a coin take-out mechanism for taking out coins one by one, and a coin take-out port from which coins taken out by the coin take-out mechanism are discharged, the coin insertion slot is formed at a position on the customer side, and the coin insertion slot is opened and closed. In addition, a tray is provided which also serves as a tray for coins to be inserted into the coin slot in a closed state, and an opening and closing mechanism for opening and closing the tray based on a predetermined opening and closing operation is provided.

[0010]

According to the present invention, a coin slot is formed at a position on the customer side, and a tray is provided which opens and closes the coin slot and also serves as a tray for coins to be inserted into the coin slot in a closed state. Paying all or a part of the coins on coins puts the coins on a tray. After checking the amount of money placed on the tray, the cashier performs a predetermined operation to activate the opening / closing mechanism to open the tray, and the coins placed on the tray fall into the coin slot and are sorted by type. And stored in the coin storage unit. Therefore, there is no need for the cashier to pick up coins paid by the customer and to insert the coins into the coin insertion slot, thereby improving workability at the time of settlement. Further, since the coin insertion slot is normally closed by the tray, foreign substances such as clips do not enter from the coin insertion slot.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows a state in which the automatic change machine of the present invention is mounted on the counter table 5. Although not shown, the automatic change machine is connected to a cash register.

This automatic change machine has a main body case 6 formed in a vertical flat shape with a reduced width dimension in the front-rear direction, and is installed on the counter table 5 at a position closer to the customer side. . A coin slot 7 is formed at the upper end of the main body case 6. The coin slot 7 is opened and closed by rotating vertically, and the coin slot 7 is closed when the coin slot 7 is closed. Trays 8a and 8b are provided which also serve as trays for coins to be inserted.

In the main body case 6, the trays 8a,
An opening / closing mechanism 9 for opening and closing 8b is provided. The opening / closing mechanism 9 includes a reversible motor 10 as shown in FIG.
The worm gear 11 driven by the motor 10, the gear 12, which meshes with the worm gear 11, and the idle gear 14, to which the rotation of the gear 12 is transmitted via a belt 13 and one end of the tray 8 a is fixed, meshes with the idle gear 14. Gear 1 with one end of tray 8b fixed
5. The motor 10 is driven in a forward or reverse direction by a signal from the cash register. The opening / closing mechanism 9 normally rotates the trays 8a and 8b to the closed position.

A coin storage section 16 is provided below the coin insertion slot 7 in the main body case 6 for storing the inserted coins by classifying them. The coin storage section 16 includes a slide 17 for sliding down coins inserted from the coin insertion slot 7, a drop hole 18 corresponding to the diameter of various coins formed on the slide 17, and coins dropped from the drop hole 18 are stacked. And a storage cylinder 19 to be formed.

Further, a coin take-out mechanism (not shown) is provided in the main body case 6 to take out various kinds of coins stacked in the storage cylinder 19 by a required number. This coin take-out mechanism is a mechanism for taking out coins by pushing out the coins stacked in the storage cylinder 19 side by side from the lowest one in order. A slit 20 having a size slightly larger than the thickness of the coin is formed at the lower end of the coin.

Next, in the lower part of the surface of the main body case 6 facing the customer, a coin take-out port 21 through which coins taken out of each storage cylinder 19 by the coin take-out mechanism are discharged.
Are formed.

A procedure at the time of settlement using an automatic change machine in such a configuration will be described. When the total price of the purchased merchandise is displayed on the display unit of the cash register, the customer who sees the display shows the tray 8 with the coin slot 7 closed.
The coins to be paid are placed on the trays 8a and 8b, and the banknotes are placed on the trays 8a and 8b if necessary.

The cashier confirms the amount of coins and bills placed on the trays 8a and 8b, and stores the amount in the cash register. If there is a difference between the set amount and the total amount, the difference is displayed on the display unit as a change amount. When the cashier presses the deposit / current key of the cash register to open the drawer, the motor 10 is driven by a signal generated by pressing the deposit / current key, and the trays 8a and 8b are moved to the positions shown in FIG. , The coins placed on the trays 8a and 8b fall into the coin insertion slot 7, and the dropped coins are stacked in the respective storage cylinders 19 by type. Then, the motor 10 is driven in the reverse direction by a signal generated when the settlement is completed and the drawer is closed, and the trays 8a and 8b rotate to the closed positions indicated by the solid lines. The trays 8a, 8
The bill placed on b is picked up from the trays 8a and 8b when the cashier checks the amount paid by the customer, and does not fall into the coin slot 7.

On the other hand, when the deposit / current total key is pressed, a signal of the number of various coins to be given to the customer as change is output from the cash register to the coin take-out mechanism, and the money take-out mechanism is operated to pay as change. A coin to be discharged is discharged to a coin outlet 21. In addition, the coin outlet 21
Is formed at a position on the customer side, the customer takes out a change by a coin from the coin outlet 21 and, when there is a change by a bill, receives the bill from the cashier.

Here, the cashier does not need to pick up or move coins paid by the customer at the time of settlement, and the workability at the time of settlement is greatly improved. Also, since the coin slot 7 is normally closed by the trays 8a and 8b, it is possible to prevent foreign matter such as a clip from entering the coin slot 7.
The entry of foreign matter prevents the occurrence of a failure.

Further, it is not necessary to prepare the change receiver 3 described in the conventional example on the counter table 5, so that the space of the counter table 5 can be reduced.

In this embodiment, an example is given in which the motor 10 for opening and closing the trays 8a and 8b is driven by a signal generated when the deposit / current key is pressed or the drawer is closed. As described above, the motor 10
May be provided with a dedicated switch for driving the.

The opening and closing mechanism 9 for opening and closing the trays 8a and 8b is not limited to the one using the motor 10 as in this embodiment, but may be a combination of a solenoid and a spring. .

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The same parts as those described in FIGS. 1 and 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. In this embodiment, an automatic change machine having an integrated drawer 22 is provided, the automatic change machine is placed on the counter table 5, and the cash register main body 2 is mounted on the upper part of the automatic change machine.
3 is placed.

The main body case 24 of the automatic change machine is formed in a horizontal flat shape, and is a portion of the upper surface of the main body case 24 which is not covered by the cash register machine main body 23 and is located at the customer side at a coin insertion slot 25. Are formed. In addition, the main body case 24 is provided with a tray 26 which doubles as a tray for coins to be inserted into the coin slot 25 when the coin slot 25 is closed by opening and closing the coin slot 25 by sliding in the front-rear direction. Have been.

In the main body case 24, the tray 26
An opening / closing mechanism 27 for opening and closing is provided. The opening / closing mechanism 27 includes a motor 28 and a motor 2 as shown in FIG.
And a link rod 30 having one end rotatably connected to the disk 29 and the other end rotatably connected to the lower surface of the tray 26. I have. The motor 28 is driven to rotate in the same direction by a signal from the cash register main body 23. The opening / closing mechanism 27 normally slides the tray 26 to a closed position.

Next, below the coin insertion slot 25 in the main body case 24, a coin accommodating section (FIG. 1) for conveying the inserted coins by a conveyor mechanism of a belt conveyor type and storing the coins sorted by type. And a coin take-out mechanism (not shown) for taking out various kinds of coins stored in the coin storage unit by a required number of coins for each type. Further, on the surface of the main body case 24 facing the customer, there is formed a coin outlet 31 through which coins removed from each coin storage unit by the coin removal mechanism are discharged.

In such a configuration, when a customer places coins or bills on the tray 26 at the time of settlement, a cashier whose amount has been confirmed is placed in the cash register body 23. When the cashier presses the deposit / current total key of the cash register main body 23 to open the drawer 22, the motor 28 is driven by a signal generated by pressing the deposit / current total key, and the tray 26 is moved to the position shown in FIG. 4, the coins placed on the tray 26 fall into the coin slot 25, and the dropped coins are stacked in the respective storage cylinders by type. The motor 28 is driven again by a signal generated by closing the drawer 22 after the settlement is completed, and the tray 26 is closed.
Slides to the closed position shown by the solid line.

On the other hand, when the deposit / current total key is pressed, a signal of the number of various coins to be delivered to the customer as change is output from the cash register main body 23 to the coin take-out mechanism, and the change is performed by operating the money take-out mechanism. The coin to be paid is discharged to the coin outlet 31.

Here, the cashier does not need to pick up or move coins paid by the customer at the time of settlement, and the workability at the time of settlement is greatly improved. In addition, since the coin slot 25 is normally closed by the tray 26, it is possible to prevent foreign matter such as a clip from entering the coin slot 25, and to prevent a failure due to the foreign matter. Is done. Further, it is not necessary to prepare the change receiver 3 described in the conventional example on the counter table 5, and the space of the counter table 5 can be saved.

[0031]

According to the present invention, since the coin slot is located on the customer side, the coin slot is opened and closed, and a tray which also serves as a coin tray in a closed state is provided, so that coins paid by the customer can be directly transferred. The coins on the tray can be dropped into the coin slot by placing them on the tray and the cashier performs a predetermined operation to open the tray, so that the cashier picks up and moves the coins paid by the customer Work can be reduced, so that the cashier's labor at the time of settlement can be reduced and workability at the time of settlement can be greatly improved.
In addition, since the coin slot is normally closed by the tray, it is possible to prevent foreign substances from entering from the coin slot and to prevent a failure due to the entry of foreign substances.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a part of the cross section.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a part thereof.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 7,25 coin slot 8a, 8b, 26 tray 9,27 opening / closing mechanism 16 coin storage

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A coin slot for inserting coins, a coin storage section for storing coins inserted from the coin slot for each type, and various kinds of coins stored in the coin storage section. An automatic changer having a coin take-out mechanism for taking out a required number of coins every time and a coin take-out port from which coins taken out by the coin take-out mechanism are discharged, wherein the coin insertion slot is formed at a position on the customer side, An automatic opening and closing mechanism for opening and closing the coin slot and for providing a tray also serving as a tray for coins to be inserted into the coin slot in a closed state, and for opening and closing the tray based on a predetermined opening and closing operation; Change machine.