JP5838432B2 - Coin transport device and coin payout device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a coin transport device that transports and releases coins that are sent one by one to a predetermined position, and a coin payout device that transports and discharges coins stacked one by one to a predetermined position. . Specifically, the present invention relates to a coin transport device and a coin payout device that are preferably used when processing a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters.

  Note that “coin” used in the present specification includes coins as currency, substitute money such as medals and tokens of game machines, and the like.

  There are a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters (that is, diameters) or thicknesses, and the coin processing device can handle these types of coins (that is, a plurality of denominations), so-called size-free. Various devices have been proposed in the past. For example, there are coin hopper devices disclosed in Patent Literature 1 and Patent Literature 2 for coin feeding devices that separate and send coins in a stacked state one by one.

  In the devices disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, a circular support shelf that protrudes in the center of the rotating disk is arranged on the upper surface of the rotating disk that is inclined upward, and the coins are locked radially from the supporting shelf side. The coin is pushed by the coin locking body while being supported by the support shelf, and is guided and sent out in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk by the coin receiving means arranged at a predetermined position. Patent Document 3 discloses an improved version of the coin hopper device of Patent Document 2.

  On the other hand, in a change machine, a vending machine, a game machine, etc., a coin sent out from a coin sending device may be conveyed to a predetermined position. For example, Patent Document 4 discloses a coin sending having a coin guide passage called an escalator. An apparatus is disclosed. Patent Document 5 discloses a coin lifting device using a spiral body (also referred to as a screw), and the coin lifting device also supports a plurality of denominations.

  However, in the apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 4, since the coins in the escalator are conveyed while the lower coins push the upper coins in an aligned state, they cannot cope with denominations having different outer diameters. That is, the inner dimension of the coin passage formed in the escalator must be compatible with the denomination to be transported, and the range of the coin outer diameter to be applied is small. For example, even if you try to transport a coin with a small outer diameter relative to the inner dimension of the coin path, the coin will not be properly aligned in the escalator and will be zigzag shaped, increasing the frictional resistance during transport and increasing the stability of the coin. Is difficult to transport and release. In addition, when coins with different thicknesses are mixed even if the outer diameter (diameter) is the same, the thickness of the coin path is set corresponding to the coin with the maximum thickness. The range is large, the lower end of the upper coin cannot be pushed up by the upper end of the lower coin, the upper end and the lower end overlap, and the coin cannot be moved in the coin path, so-called coin clogging occurs.

  Furthermore, in the apparatus of Patent Document 4, since coins cannot be conveyed unless there are coins in the hopper and escalator, the coins remain in the hopper and escalator, and the escalator is configured to remove the remaining coins. There is also a problem that the cover plate to be removed must be taken out and the coins inside must be taken out. Techniques for solving this problem have been proposed in the past. For example, in a coin delivery device disclosed in Patent Document 6, an open / close gate is provided on the side wall of a coin passage, and a hopper and a gate are provided via an open gate. Coins remaining in the escalator are discharged to the collection port.

  In the improved apparatus of Patent Document 6, since the coins remaining in the escalator are discharged to the collection port, there is a problem that all the coins inserted into the hopper cannot be conveyed to a predetermined position. In other words, in order to transport a predetermined number of coins to a predetermined position, it is necessary to insert extra coins into the hopper in consideration of the number of remaining coins (that is, the number of coins to be ejected). Furthermore, there is a need for a collecting device for collecting the remaining coins, and there is a problem that the size of the device is increased to provide a collecting port.

  In the apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 5, although it is easy to deal with denominations having different outer diameters or thicknesses, the larger the outer diameter of the coin, the easier the outer peripheral surface of the coin is detached from the outer peripheral surface of the helical body, and the larger the outer diameter. In the case of a diameter coin, the coin is caught between the spiral body and the guide passage, and so-called biting occurs. Therefore, in reality, it is necessary to replace the spiral body in accordance with the outer diameter of the coin, and there is a problem that the outer diameter range that can be handled is insufficient. Furthermore, since the spiral body slides the coin, there is a problem that it is easy to wear and the durability is inferior.

  Therefore, there is a demand for a new coin transport device that can handle coins of various denominations that have a wide range of outer diameters or thicknesses of coins that can be handled, and that is compatible with size free. If this new coin transport device is realized, for example, a coin payout device compatible with size free can be realized by combining with the coin delivery device of Patent Document 2.

  When the coin hopper device disclosed in Patent Document 2 is conveyed vertically upward using the above-described new coin conveying device, the coin is sent out from the rotating disk inclined upward, so that the coin traveling angle is changed from obliquely upward to vertically upward. There is a need. In addition, in order to support size-free, it is required that the advance angle can be changed for a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters or thicknesses. However, there has been no configuration for realizing such functions.

European Patent Application No. 0957456 (FIGS. 1-7, pages 2-4) JP 2008-97322 A (FIG. 4, paragraph number 0006, paragraph numbers 0026 to 0028) JP 2009-70008 (FIG. 4, paragraph numbers 0051 to 0058) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-94575 (FIGS. 1 and 2, paragraph number 0011) Japanese Patent No. 3003410 (FIGS. 2 to 4, paragraph numbers 0007 and 0021) Japanese Patent No. 3206699 (FIG. 1, paragraphs 0022 to 0024)

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a coin transport device that can transport sent coins while changing the advancing angle. There is.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a coin transport device that can transport a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters or different thicknesses while changing their advance angle.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a coin transport device having a wide range of outer diameters or thicknesses of coins that can be transported.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a coin transport device that can discharge all the coins that have been sent out without remaining.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a coin transport device that makes it unnecessary to collect residual coins.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a coin payout device capable of separating coins stored for a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters or thicknesses one by one and then transporting and paying them to a predetermined position. There is.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a coin payout device having a wide range of outer diameters or thicknesses of payable coins.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a coin payout device capable of releasing all the coins inserted into the coin delivery device without remaining.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a coin payout device that makes it unnecessary to collect residual coins.
Other objects of the present invention which are not specified here will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.

  In order to achieve this object, the present invention is configured as follows.

( 1 ) The coin transport device according to the present invention is a coin transport device that receives coins sent one by one at the entrance and transports them to the exit, and includes left and right guide surfaces that guide the peripheral surface of the coin, and the coins. A coin guide passage extending from the entrance to the exit, and arranged in a predetermined order along the left guide surface or the right guide surface. And the first to n-th rotating discs respectively rotating around the first to n-th rotating axis substantially perpendicular to the front and back guide surfaces and the first to n-th rotating discs on the coin guide passage side. It protrudes into the coin guide passage from the positioned surface, and is arranged opposite to the corresponding rotation axis, and rotates around the corresponding rotation axis by rotating integrally with the corresponding rotating disk. You The first and second coin pushers, the first and second gears that are provided on the back side opposite to the coin guide passage side in each of the first and second rotating discs and mesh with each other; Each of the second to n-th rotating discs is provided on the back surface side opposite to the coin guide passage side, and a plurality of third meshing meshes with each other in two adjacent rotating discs of the second to n-th rotating discs. A gear, a base portion forming the back guide surface and having an opening for receiving the plurality of third gears, and a bottom surface forming the front and back guide surfaces and being perpendicular to the bottom surface and facing each other A pair of side surfaces forming guide grooves that form the left and right guide surfaces, and a plate fixed to the surface of the base portion so that the guide grooves and the surface of the base portion face each other, 1 to n One of the two adjacent turntables of the turntables rotates in the first rotation direction, the other rotates in the second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction, and the first of the one turntables Each of the one rotating disk and the other rotating disk so that the first and second coin pressing bodies and the first and second coin pressing bodies of the other rotating disk rotate while maintaining a predetermined rotational phase difference. And the first to n-th rotating discs are provided on the base portion so that the respective surfaces of the first to n-th rotating discs are substantially flush with the surface of the base portion. Are supported by each of the first to n-th turntables together with the surface of the base portion to form the back guide surface, and the front and back surfaces of the coin in the coin guide passage are Rotating while guiding directly on the guide surface By the first and second pusher pushes in contact with the peripheral surface of the coin of the coin guiding passage to, configured to convey the said coins from said inlet to said outlet, said first and The coin transport device is arranged such that the second rotation axis intersects at a predetermined angle when viewed from one of the left and right guide surfaces.

In the coin transport device according to the present invention, the coin guide passage extending from the entrance toward the exit, and the first to n-th rotation axes that are substantially perpendicular to the front and back guide surfaces are rotated. 1 to n-th coin pushing means. The coin guide passage has the left and right guide surfaces that guide the peripheral surface of the coin, and the front and back guide surfaces that respectively guide the front and back surfaces of the coin. The first to n-th rotation axis lines are arranged in a predetermined order from the inlet toward the outlet, and in the first to n-th coin pushing means, the rotation axes corresponding to the rotation axes that are adjacent to each other are paired. One of the coin pushing means rotates in the first rotation direction and the other rotates in the second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction, thereby pushing the circumferential surface of the coin. Therefore, if the rotational movements of the first to nth coin pushing means are synchronized and have an appropriate phase difference, the coins received at the entrance are sequentially transferred to the first to nth coin pushing means. It is pushed and moved along the guide passage. In addition, since the first and second rotation axes are arranged so as to intersect at a predetermined angle when viewed from one of the left and right guide surfaces, this angle is matched with the amount of change in the advance angle in the coin transport device. By setting, the coin can be transported while changing its traveling direction.

  The peripheral surface is guided by the left and right guide surfaces, and the coins guided on the front and back surfaces by the front and back guide surfaces are pushed by the coin pushing means for rotating and moving the coins. In this case, the range of the outer diameter (diameter) or thickness of the coin that can be transported becomes wider. That is, since the coin pushing means protruding into the coin guide passage is disposed between the left and right guide surfaces, the distance between the left and right guide surfaces and the coin pushing means is larger, and If the coin has an outer diameter (diameter) in a range smaller than the interval between the left and right guide surfaces, the coin is moved while being supported by one of the left and right guide surfaces and the coin pushing means. It becomes possible. Accordingly, the outer diameter range of the coins that can be conveyed is widened. On the other hand, since the coins are pushed and conveyed one by one by the coin pushing means, the adjacent coins do not overlap in the coin guide passage. Therefore, even if the distance between the front and back guide surfaces is set wide, coin clogging does not occur. Therefore, the thickness range of the coins that can be conveyed is widened. Therefore, even if it is multiple types of coin from which an outer diameter or thickness differs, it can be conveyed, changing the advancing angle.

  Further, since the coin is transported by the rotational movement of the first to nth coin pushing means, the coin remains as in the prior art device that pushes and transports the upper coin with the lower coin. Absent. Therefore, it is not necessary to collect residual coins, and the processing efficiency can be improved. Further, all the coins that have been sent out can be discharged from the outlet without remaining. Further, by rotating the first to n-th coin pushing means in a direction opposite to that during normal transfer of the coin, the coin in the coin guide passage is reversely directed from the outlet toward the inlet. It is also possible to transport it.

  In the present invention, the “front and back guide surfaces” include those substantially functioning as surfaces, and for example, linear bodies may be arranged in parallel to function as surfaces. Further, “rotation axis” means a straight line that becomes the center of rotation, and “rotation axis intersects” includes that the rotation axis intersects on the extension line.

( 2 ) In a preferred example of the coin transport device according to the present invention, the second to n-th rotation axes are arranged in the coin guide path along the coin guide path so as to be parallel to each other. They are alternately arranged on the line at predetermined intervals, and are arranged in a zigzag shape along the extending direction of the coin guide passage. In this case, since the second to n-th coin pushing means are arranged in two rows on the first and second axis arrangement lines, the coin conveyance speed can be increased. That is, the moving speed of the coin pushing means that rotates is composed of a speed component along the carrying direction and a speed component perpendicular to the carrying direction, and these speed components change according to the rotation angle of the coin pushing means. To do. The larger the speed component along the transport direction, the faster the coin transport speed. When the second to n-th coin pushing means are arranged in two rows, the rotation angle range in which the speed component along the transport direction is relatively large is easily used out of the rotation angle range of the coin pushing body. This makes it possible to increase the coin conveyance speed.

( 3 ) In another preferred example of the coin transport device of the present invention, the back guide surface includes a first guide surface portion orthogonal to the first rotation axis and a second guide surface orthogonal to the second rotation axis. And the first and second guide surface portions are connected via the first curved surface portion. In this case, since the coin is guided along the first curved surface portion, there is an advantage that the advance angle of the coin can be changed more smoothly.

( 4 ) In still another preferred example of the coin transport device according to the present invention, in the coin transport device according to ( 3 ), the front guide surface has a second curved surface portion facing the first curved surface portion. Yes. In this case, since the coin is guided along the first and second curved surface portions, there is an advantage that the advance angle of the coin can be changed more smoothly.

(5) In yet another preferred embodiment of the coin transporting device according to the present invention, each of the pre-Symbol first and second gears includes a bevel gear portion having a cone angle corresponding to the predetermined angle. In this case, the first and second coin pushing means are formed in a state in which a predetermined angle formed by the first and second rotation axes is formed while having a simple configuration in which the first and second gears are engaged with each other. There is an advantage that can be rotated.

(6) In yet another preferred embodiment of the coin transporting device according to the present invention, before Symbol first gear includes a spur gear portion, the driving force is transmitted from the driving means through the spur gear portion to said first gear Is done. In this case, when the coin transport device is used together with the coin delivery device, the drive means of the coin delivery device can be used with a relatively simple configuration, and there is an advantage that the dedicated drive means can be omitted from the coin transport device. Further, since the coin sending device and the coin transport device are driven by one driving means, there is an advantage that the coin sending device and the coin transport device can be easily driven synchronously.

( 7 ) In still another preferred example of the coin transport device according to the present invention, a rotation monitoring sensor for detecting the presence or absence of rotation of the first to n-th rotating disk is provided, and the rotation monitoring sensor is the first to n-th rotation. When the stop of the rotation of the turntable is detected, a signal indicating the stop of the rotation is output. In this case, when the coin is bitten in the coin transport device and the rotation of the first to n-th rotating discs is stopped, the coin is transferred based on the signal indicating the stop of the rotation . There is an advantage that the delivery can be stopped. In other words, there is an advantage that unnecessary load on the coin transport device can be avoided and durability can be improved.

( 8 ) A coin payout device according to the present invention includes a coin delivery device that separates and feeds coins in a stacked state one by one, and a coin transport that receives the coin sent from the coin delivery device at the entrance and transports it to the exit A coin payout device for paying out coins to a predetermined place, wherein the coin delivery device is tilted upward at a predetermined angle with a holding bowl for holding coins in a stacked state, and A circular support shelf is formed at the center of the upper surface, and has a plurality of coin locking bodies that are equally spaced and radially extend from the support shelf side in the circumferential direction, and are retained in the retaining bowl. The coins are brought into surface contact with the holding surfaces between the plurality of coin locking bodies and received one by one, and pushed by the plurality of coin locking bodies while being supported by the support shelf and the holding surface. And a coin receiving means that extends in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk from the vicinity of the support shelf, receives the coins pushed by the rotating disk, and feeds the coins one by one in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk, and the rotating Drive means for rotationally driving a disk, wherein the coin transport device is a coin payout device comprising the coin transport device of any one of ( 1 ) to ( 7 ).

In the coin payout device according to the present invention, the coin delivery device is tilted upward at a predetermined angle, and the circular support shelf is formed at the center of the upper surface thereof. In addition, the rotating disk having the plurality of coin locking bodies that are equally spaced and extend radially from the support shelf side, and the coin that extends from the vicinity of the support shelf in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk. Receiving means; and driving means for rotating the rotating disk. The rotating disk rotated by the driving means receives the coins one by one by bringing the coins into surface contact with the holding surfaces between the plurality of coin locking bodies. Since the plurality of coin locking bodies extend radially from the support shelf side in the circumferential direction, a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters are received between the plurality of coin locking bodies. Then, the coin receiving means receives the coin pushed by the plurality of coin engaging members while being supported by the support shelf and the holding surface, and sends the coin to the outside in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk. Therefore, the coin delivery device can reliably deliver a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters even if they are put into the storage bowl.

In addition, the coin transport device includes the coin transport devices of (1) to (7). Therefore, as described in the above (1), even if a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters or thicknesses can be introduced and conveyed into the coin guide passage while changing their advancing angles. Further, the coins do not remain as in the prior art device that pushes and conveys the upper coin with the lower coin. Therefore, it is not necessary to collect residual coins, and the processing efficiency can be improved. Further, all the coins that have been sent out can be discharged from the outlet without remaining.

Therefore, in the coin payout device according to the present invention, it is possible to separate coins in a piled state one by one and pay them to a predetermined place for a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters or thicknesses. In addition, the outer diameter range of the payable coins is widened. Furthermore, it is not necessary to collect residual coins, and the processing efficiency can be increased. In addition, all the coins put into the holding bowl of the coin delivery device can be discharged from the outlet of the coin transport device without remaining.

Furthermore, in the case where the coin transporting device consists of a coin conveying device of the above (2) to (7), the same effect can be obtained as described in (2) to (7).

In the coin transport device according to the present invention, (a) a coin can be transported while changing its travel angle, and (b) even a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters or thicknesses can be transported while changing their travel angle. (C) Wide range of outer diameter or thickness of coins that can be transported, (d) All the coins that have been sent out can be released without remaining, (e) No need to collect remaining coins, and increase processing efficiency The effect that it can be obtained.

In the coin payout device according to the present invention, (a) the coins stored for a plurality of types of coins having different outer diameters or thicknesses can be separated one by one and then transported to a predetermined position and released. (B) Payout The range of possible outer diameters or thicknesses of coins is wide. (C) All the coins inserted into the coin delivery device can be released without remaining. (D) The collection of residual coins is not required, and the processing efficiency is improved. The effect that it can be obtained.

It is a perspective view which shows the coin payout apparatus of Example 1 of this invention. It is a front view of the coin payout device of FIG. It is a side view of the coin payout device of FIG. It is a front view which shows the coin delivery apparatus which comprises the coin payout apparatus of FIG. 1, and the 1st coin conveyance unit of a coin conveyance apparatus. It is sectional drawing along the VV line of FIG. It is a principal part disassembled perspective view of the coin delivery apparatus of FIG. 4, and a 1st coin conveyance unit. It is the principal part disassembled perspective view which looked at the coin conveying apparatus which comprises the coin sending-out apparatus of FIG. 1 from the front side. It is the principal part disassembled perspective view seen from the back side which shows the coin conveying apparatus which comprises the coin sending-out apparatus of FIG. It is the top view seen from the back surface side which shows the top plate of the coin conveying apparatus which comprises the coin delivery apparatus of FIG. It is a front view which shows the base part of the coin conveying apparatus which comprises the coin sending-out apparatus of FIG. It is sectional drawing along the XI-XI line of FIG. It is a front view which shows the 2nd coin conveyance unit of the coin conveyance apparatus which comprises the coin payout apparatus of FIG. It is a perspective view of the 2nd coin conveyance unit of FIG. It is a front view which shows the 3rd coin conveyance unit of the coin conveyance apparatus which comprises the coin payment apparatus of FIG. It is the perspective view seen from the upper right side of the 3rd coin conveyance unit of FIG. It is the perspective view seen from the lower left side of the 3rd coin conveyance unit of FIG. It is a front view which shows the driving force transmission mechanism of the coin payout apparatus of FIG. FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the driving force transmission mechanism of FIG. 17. FIG. 18 is a side view of the driving force transmission mechanism of FIG. 17. It is a front view of the state which removed the top plate for demonstrating operation | movement of the coin payment apparatus of FIG. FIG. 21 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 20. FIG. 22 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 21. FIG. 23 is a front view of the state in which the top plate is removed for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 and is a continuation of FIG. 22. FIG. 24 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 23. FIG. 25 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 24. FIG. 26 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 25. FIG. 27 is a front view of the state in which the top plate is removed for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 and is a continuation of FIG. 26. FIG. 28 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 27. FIG. 29 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 28. FIG. 30 is a front view of the state in which the top plate for explaining the operation of the coin payout device of FIG. 1 is removed, and is a continuation of FIG. 29. It is a front view which shows the 3rd coin conveyance unit of the coin conveyance apparatus which comprises the coin payment apparatus of Example 2 of this invention. It is the perspective view seen from the upper right side of the 3rd coin conveyance unit of FIG. It is the perspective view seen from the lower left side of the 3rd coin conveyance unit of FIG.

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

  1, 2 and 3 show a coin payout device 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. This coin payout device 1 has a function of paying out coins stacked one by one to a predetermined payout position, and is roughly configured to include a coin sending device 10 and a coin transport device 20. The coin payout device 1 is capable of paying out a plurality of types (ie, denominations) of coins having different outer diameters (ie, diameters) or thicknesses, and functions as a so-called size-free coin payout device.

(Coin delivery device)
First, the coin sending device 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. The coin sending device 10 has a function of separating and sending out coins in a stacked state one by one, and a holding bowl 102 for holding a large number of coins, and an attachment for supporting and fixing the holding bowl 102 inclined upward. It has a base 104, a rotating disk 106 for sorting coins one by one, a driving means 108 for driving the rotating disk 106, a coin receiving means 112 for receiving coins from the rotating disk 106, and a coin dropping means 118.

(Holding bowl)
The holding bowl 102 has a function of holding a large number of coins in a stacked state and feeding them to the rotating disk 106. The storage bowl 102 projects forward (right side in FIG. 3) from the mounting base 104 and increases in depth as it approaches the rotating disk 106, in other words, the bottom wall 122 is inclined downward toward the rotating disk 106. The head portion 102 </ b> A, a coin insertion slot 102 </ b> B for inserting coins, and an exterior portion 102 </ b> C that is in close contact with the mounting base 104 and surrounds at least the lower outer periphery of the rotating disk 106.

  The inclination of the bottom wall 122 is an angle at which a coin can slide down to the rotating disk 106 side by its own weight. The head portion 102 </ b> A has a so-called saddle shape in which the rotating disk 106 side is opened, and an open end portion thereof is closely fixed to the mounting base 104. As shown in FIG. 5, a narrow vertical groove 124 is formed in front of the lower portion of the rotary disk 106 so that a dropped coin can easily stand. The vertical groove 124 is formed by a vertical wall 126 inclined to the rotary disk 106 side with respect to a perpendicular line substantially parallel to the rotary disk 106 formed following the exterior part 102C, the rotary disk 106, and the external part 102C. In this case, the distance between the upper surface of the rotating disk 106 and the vertical wall 126 of the holding bowl 102 is set to be smaller than the diameter of the minimum coin and 5 to 10 times the thickness of the maximum thickness coin. The interval is set to be wider toward the downstream side in the rotation direction. This is because the coin is stood and further tilted toward the rotating disk 106 so that the coin can be paid out by being locked to a coin locking body 128 described later until the last one.

  The exterior portion 102 </ b> C has a cylindrical ring shape, and is disposed close to the outer periphery of the rotating disk 106. Therefore, coins having different diameters are retained in a stacked state in the retaining bowl 102, slide down on the inclined bottom wall 122 due to their own weight, and are fed into the rotating disk 106. Further, the coins rotated by the rotating disk 106 are guided by the exterior portion 102C so as to remain on the rotating disk 106.

(Mounting base)
The mounting base 104 has a function of rotatably supporting the rotating disk 106 and fixing the storage bowl 102. The mounting base 104 includes two horizontal mounting bases 104A, a first mounting part 104B inclined with respect to the mounting base 104A, a second mounting part 104C extending vertically upward from the upper end of the first mounting part 104B, and a mounting base 104B. It includes support side walls 104L and 104R which are erected substantially at right angles to the mounting portion 104A. The mounting table portion 104A has a rectangular flat plate shape and is formed integrally with the supporting side walls 104L and 104R. The first mounting portion 104B has a flat plate shape and is inclined at an upward angle of about 60 degrees with respect to the mounting table portion 104A. The rotating disk 106 is disposed on the upward upper surface 104U side, and the driving means 108 is disposed on the rear surface side. Is installed. The inclination angle of the first mounting portion 104B is preferably in the range of 50 degrees to 70 degrees. This is because when the angle is smaller than 50 degrees, the coin C holding amount decreases, and when the angle is larger than 70 degrees, the coin easily falls from a coin locking body 128 described later. The second attachment portion 104C is formed integrally with the first attachment portion 104B and supports the coin transport device 20.

(Rotating disc)
The rotating disk 106 has a function of sorting coins stacked in different outer diameters one by one and transporting them to the coin receiving means 112. The rotating disk 106 is a disc, and has a circular central protrusion 132 at the center, a ring-shaped holding surface 134 around the central protrusion 132, and a coin locking body 128 radially formed on the holding surface 134. Is disposed close to the upward upper surface 104U. The rotating disk 106 is inclined upward and rotated counterclockwise in FIG. It is preferable to form a protrusion 133 on the upper surface of the central protrusion 132 and thereby stir the coin.

  The outer periphery of the central protrusion 132 is a support shelf 136, the support shelf 136 is substantially perpendicular to the holding surface 134, and the amount of protrusion from the holding surface 134 is set lower than the thickness of the thinnest coin expected to be used. ing. The support shelf 136 has a function of holding only one coin on the holding surface 134 between the coin locking bodies 128. This is because two coins are not supported by the support shelf 136.

  The holding surface 134 has a function of holding a coin in surface contact with one surface of a coin whose peripheral surface is supported by the support shelf 136. The holding surface 134 is a ring-shaped flat surface formed on the outer periphery of the central protrusion 132 and is inclined about 60 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane.

The coin locking body 128 is in contact with the circumferential surface of the coin and has a function of pushing the coin. The coin locking body 128 is a rib-like ridge formed in a fixed state radially at equal intervals with respect to the rotation axis of the rotary disk 106. In this embodiment, the coin locking body 128 has a trapezoidal trapezoidal shape when viewed from the front, and pushes the coin by the pushing edge 138 at the front end in the rotational direction. The pushing edge 138 extends vertically upward with respect to the holding surface 134, and the height from the holding surface 134 may be a height that can push the coin. However, when the height of the pushing edge 138 is low, the contact pressure per unit length when pushing the coin increases, so it is preferable that the pushing edge 138 be as high as possible. On the other hand, when the height of the pushing edge 138 is higher than a predetermined amount, the length of the climbing slope 142 for the coin receiving means 112 described later becomes long, and the coin with the smallest diameter is pushed by the pushing edge 138. Sometimes it is pushed up by the climbing slope 142, and the coin with the smallest diameter is easily dropped from the coin receiving means 112. Therefore, it is preferable that the pushing edge 138 is formed as high as possible within a range in which the coin having the smallest diameter is pushed by the pushing edge 138 and is not pushed up by the riding slope 142. According to experiments, when a coin having a diameter of 20 mm or more is targeted, the height of the pushing edge 138 is preferably about 2 mm.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the rotation direction downstream edge 144 of the coin locking body 128 is a pushing edge so that the entire length of the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving body 145 constituting the coin receiving means 112 is simultaneously close to the holding surface 134. It is preferable to form it inclined with respect to 138. This is because when the coin receiver 145 comes close to the holding surface 134, no coin is sandwiched between the holding surface 134 and the coin receiver 145. The top portion 147 and the downstream edge 144 of the coin locking body 128 are formed on a stepped slope 149. One surface of the coin is held in surface contact with the holding surface 134 between the adjacent coin locking bodies 128. Therefore, the distance between the pushing edge 138 and the downstream edge 144 on the holding surface 134 is such that the support shelf 136 side is narrow and gradually expands toward the periphery of the rotating disk 106, and the holding surface 134 has a central protrusion 132. In contrast, it exhibits an inverted trapezoid. When one of the minimum diameter coins expected to be used is supported on the support shelf 136, the other minimum diameter coin is set not to be supported by the support shelf 136. In other words, the two coins having the smallest diameter are set so as not to come into surface contact with the holding surface 134 at a position close to the support shelf 136. This is to prevent two coins from being continuously paid out.

  The climbing slope 142 has a function of pushing up the end of the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving body 145 on the support shelf 136 side from the holding surface 134 along this end. As shown in FIG. 4, the climbing slope 142 is formed at a corner formed by the support shelf 136 and the pushing edge 138, and slopes from the holding surface 134 to the top 147 of the coin locking body 128, and has a minimum diameter. When coins are in contact with the support shelf 136 and the pushing edge 138, they are preferably formed in a triangular space formed by them. This is because, when the climbing slope 142 is too large, a part of the coin is placed on the climbing slope 142 in a state where the coin is guided to the receiving edge 146, and the coin easily falls from the receiving edge 146.

(Driving means)
The drive unit 108 has a function of rotating the rotary disk 106 at a predetermined speed. In the present embodiment, the driving means 108 includes an electric motor 152 and a speed reducer 154. A reduction gear 154 is fixed to the back surface of the first mounting portion 104B, and an output gear (not shown) of an electric motor 152 fixed to the reduction gear 154 is engaged with the input gear. An output shaft (not shown) of the speed reducer 154 passes through the first mounting portion 104B, and is tightly inserted and fixed in a fitting hole (not shown) in the center of the rotary disk 106.

  The driving means 108 has an overload prevention function. That is, when the driving means 108 is overloaded due to an abnormality such as a coin jam or the like, a reverse polarity current flows through the electric motor 152 by a control device (not shown), and the rotating disk 106 is reversely rotated. As a result, when the abnormality is resolved and the load state of the drive unit 108 becomes normal, the control device causes the rotary disk 106 to rotate forward again.

(Coin receipt means)
The coin receiving means 112 has a function of moving the coins that are divided and sent one by one by the rotating disk 106 in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk 106 and performing an escaping movement with respect to the coin locking body 128. In this embodiment, the coin receiving means 112 is a pentagonal plate body, the receiving edge 146 is formed with a straight receiving edge 146 facing the pushing edge 138, and the other end is movably supported by the floating support means 174. In addition, the coin receiving member 145 is urged toward the rotary disk 106 by a biasing means (not shown) at the intermediate portion.

  When the receiving edge 146 extends in a straight line from the vicinity of the support shelf 136 in the circumferential direction of the rotary disk 106 and is opposed to the pushing edge 138 (when a coin is positioned therebetween), the extension line of the edges is It is formed to make an acute angle. In other words, as shown in FIG. 4, the receiving edge 146 is offset upward with respect to the center of the rotary disk 106 and faces the entire length of the holding surface 134 in the circumferential direction.

  The floating support means 174 has a function of supporting the coin receiving means 112 so that the posture can be changed in any direction, up, down, left, and right within a predetermined range. Specifically, the coin receiving means 112 can move so as to get over the coin locking body 128 while being in contact with the climbing slope 142 and the position where the receiving edge 146 is close to the holding surface 134. The floating support means 174 has the same configuration as that of the above-described Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2008-97322), and the description of the specific configuration is omitted here.

(Coin dropping means)
The coin dropping unit 118 has a function of dropping a coin placed on the coin held in contact with the holding surface 134 so that the overlapping coins do not reach the coin receiving unit 112. The coin dropping means 118 is disposed above the axis of the rotating disk 106 and relative to the periphery of the rotating disk 106. In other words, the coin dropping means 118 is at a position of about 2 o'clock with respect to the rotating disk 106, and as shown in FIG. 4, the coin dropping means 118 is moved forward and backward in a plane parallel to the holding surface 134 of the rotating disk 106. It is configured to be possible. The coin dropping means 118 has the same configuration as that of Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2008-97322) described above, and detailed description thereof is omitted here.

(Coin transport device)
Next, the coin transport device 20 will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 9, the coin transport device 20 includes a coin guide portion 200 having a coin guide passage 210 extending from the inlet 202 toward the outlet 204, and a pair of coin pushers 504 </ b> A to 504 </ b> L and 506 </ b> A to 506 </ b> L. Are provided with a coin pushing mechanism 500 having first to twelfth rotary plates 502A to 502L, a coin discharge means 230 and a coin payout detection sensor 240 arranged in the vicinity of the outlet 204. Further, the coin transport device 20 includes first to third coin transport units 21 to 23 that divide the coin guide passage 210 into three in the extending direction. In other words, the coin transport device 20 is configured such that the coin guide passage 210 is formed by connecting the first and third coin transport units 21 and 23 via the second coin transport unit 22. The entrance 202 of the coin guide passage 210 is provided at the lower part of the first coin transport unit 21, and the exit 204 is provided at the upper left side of the third coin transport unit 23.

(Coin guide)
The coin guide unit 200 includes a base body 300, a top plate 400 provided on the surface 302 of the base body 300, and an entrance guide member 450. On the surface 302 side of the base body 300, as shown in FIGS. 6, 7 and 10, the first to twelfth turntables 502A supported rotatably around the first to twelfth rotation axes 332A to 332L. ˜502L are arranged. The first to twelfth rotation axes 332 </ b> A to 332 </ b> L are substantially perpendicular to the surface 302 of the base body 300.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the surface 302 of the base body 300 includes a first guide surface portion 222 and a second guide surface portion 224. The first guide surface portion 222 is parallel to the upward upper surface 104U of the first mounting portion 104B. In other words, the first guide surface portion 222 has an inclination angle of about 60 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane in the same manner as the holding surface 134 of the rotating disk 106. The second guide surface portion 224 is substantially perpendicular to the horizontal plane and intersects the first guide surface portion 222 at an angle of about 150 degrees. In other words, the first and second guide surface portions 222 and 224 have normals that intersect each other at an angle of about 30 degrees. A first curved surface portion 226 is formed between the first and second guide surface portions 222 and 224. In other words, the first and second guide surface portions 222 and 224 are smoothly connected via the first curved surface portion 226.

  The first and second rotation axes 332A and 332B are arranged on the first axis arrangement line 312 at a predetermined interval d1, and as seen from the side of the base body 300 as shown in FIG. They are arranged so as to intersect at a predetermined angle α (viewed from either one of left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214 described later). In other words, the coin guide passages 210 are arranged so as to intersect at a predetermined angle α when viewed from a direction substantially perpendicular to the extending direction of the coin guide passage 210 and substantially parallel to the surface 302 of the base body 300. Since the first rotation axis 332A is substantially perpendicular to the first guide surface portion 222 and the second rotation axis 332B is substantially perpendicular to the second guide surface portion 224, the angle α is about 30 degrees.

The second to twelfth rotation axes 332B to 332L are substantially parallel to each other. The second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth rotation axes 332B, 332D, 332F, 332H, 332J, and 332L are arranged in a row at a predetermined interval d2 on the first axis arrangement line 312. The third, fifth, seventh, ninth, and eleventh rotation axes 332C, 332E, 332G, 332I, and 332K are arranged in a line at a predetermined interval d2 on the second axis arrangement line 314. In other words, among the second to twelfth rotation axes 332 </ b> B to 332 </ b> L, even numbers are arranged in a line on the first axis arrangement line 312, and odd numbers are arranged in a line on the second axis arrangement line 314. The The first and second axis array lines 312 and 314 are parallel to each other and arranged at a predetermined interval w. The third, fifth, seventh, ninth and eleventh rotation axes 332C, 332E, 332G, 332I, 332K are the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth rotation axes 332B, 332D, 332F, 332H, 332J , and 332L are offset by a predetermined distance s. In other words, the second to twelfth rotation axes 332 </ b> B to 332 </ b> L are arranged in a zigzag shape (that is, a zigzag shape) along the extending direction of the coin guide passage 210.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, a coin guide groove 406 extending from the inlet 202 toward the outlet 204 is formed on the back surface 404 side of the top plate 400. The coin guide groove 406 has a bottom surface 410 and first and second side surfaces 412, 414, and is fixed to the base body 300 in a state where the back surface 404 is superimposed on the front surface 302 of the base body 300. The width wg of the coin guide groove 406 is set to be slightly larger than the diameter of the maximum diameter coin, and the depth dg (see FIG. 11) is set to be slightly larger than the thickness of the maximum thickness coin. In other words, coins of a plurality of denominations having different diameters and thicknesses can be passed through the inside of the coin guide groove 406 while being guided by the bottom surface 410 and the first and second side surfaces 412 and 414. A width wg and a depth dg of the coin guide groove 406 are set. In other words, it is set so that coins that differ only in outer diameter (diameter) or thickness within a predetermined range can be conveyed.

  The first side surface 412 of the coin guide groove 406 is a curve formed by connecting a plurality of arcs with the third, fifth, seventh, ninth, and eleventh rotation axes 332C, 332E, 332G, 332I, and 332K as centers. It is formed along 418. The second side surface 414 of the coin guide groove 406 has a plurality of arcs around the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth rotation axes 332B, 332D, 332F, 332H, 332J, 332L. It is formed along a curve 416 that is connected.

  The front surface 402 and the back surface 404 of the top plate 400 are substantially parallel to the front surface 302 of the base body 300 and are curved corresponding to the shape of the front surface 302 of the base body 300. The bottom surface 410 of the coin guide groove 406 has a second curved surface portion 228 that faces the first curved surface portion 226 of the base body 300.

  An annular groove 422 that prevents contact with the top plate 400 when coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L, which will be described later, rotate on the back surface 404 of the top plate 400 has first to twelfth rotation axes. It is formed corresponding to each of 332A-332L. Further, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 11, on the back surface 404 of the top plate 400, alignment protrusions 432 are formed at positions corresponding to the third to twelfth rotation axes 332 C to 332 L, and the top plate 400 An alignment protrusion 434 is formed at a predetermined position on the periphery. The alignment protrusion 432 is inserted into an alignment hole 342 formed in third to twelfth support shafts 334C to 334L, which will be described later, and the alignment protrusion 434 is located at a predetermined position on the periphery of the surface 302 of the base body 300. Is inserted into the alignment hole 344 formed in the above. Thereby, the top plate 400 can be fixed in a state of being aligned with the base body 300.

  The coin guide passage 210 is constituted by the surface 302 of the base body 300, the bottom surface 410 of the coin guide groove 406 of the top plate 400, and the first and second side surfaces 412, 414. In other words, the surface 302 of the base body 300 functions as the guide surface 218 on the back of the coin guide passage 210, and the bottom surface 410 of the coin guide groove 406 of the top plate 400 functions as the front guide surface 216 of the coin guide passage 210. The first and second side surfaces 412 and 414 of the coin guide groove 406 of the top plate 400 function as the left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214 of the coin guide passage 210. In the coin guide passage 210, the circumferential surface of the coin introduced from the entrance 202 is the left and right guide surfaces 212, 214 of the coin guide passage 210 (that is, the first and second side surfaces 412, 414 of the coin guide groove 406). ). The front and back surfaces of the coin are guided by the front and back guide surfaces 216 and 218 of the coin guide passage 210 (that is, the bottom surface 410 of the coin guide groove 406 and the front surface 302 of the base body 300).

  The inlet guide member 450 forms the inlet 202 of the coin guide passage 210 together with the top plate 400. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the inlet guide member 450 includes a substantially pentagonal attachment portion 452, a protrusion 456 extending from the attachment portion 452 toward the first rotation axis 332 </ b> A, and a support provided on the protrusion 456. And a disc body 454 rotatably supported on the shaft. The disc body 454 is disposed on the back surface side of the protrusion 456 so as to cover a recess 502Aa formed in a central portion of the first rotating disk 502A described later. As shown in FIG. 4, the protrusion 456 is arranged with its downward side surface 458 facing the coin delivery port 190 of the coin delivery device 10. The downward side surface 458 of the protrusion 456 has a function of guiding the peripheral surface of the coin sent out from the coin delivery port 190 and smoothly introducing the coin into the entrance 202 of the coin guide passage 210.

(Coin pushing mechanism)
As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8 and 10, the coin pushing mechanism 500 includes first to twelfth rotary plates 502 </ b> A to 502 </ b> L that rotate around the first to twelfth rotation axes 332 </ b> A to 332 </ b> L. . The first to twelfth rotary disks 502A to 502L are rotatably supported by the first to twelfth support shafts 334A to 334L disposed on the base body 300. The first to twelfth support shafts 334A to 334L have a substantially cylindrical outer shape with the first to twelfth rotation axes 332A to 332L as the central axis, and have substantially the same diameter. The first turntable 502A has an outer shape that is substantially circular in plan view, and a circular recess 502Aa (see FIG. 6) is formed at the center. In other words, the first turntable 502A has an annular peripheral portion that protrudes in a direction parallel to the first rotation axis 332A. The second to twelfth rotary disks 502B to 502L have an outer shape that is substantially circular in plan view.

  The surface of the first turntable 502A has a substantially oval (or oval) planar shape that bends and extends along the outer periphery of the first turntable 502A and is parallel to the first rotation axis 332A. A pair of coin pushers 504A and 506A having a columnar outer shape protruding in the direction is provided. Since the coin pushers 504A and 506A have a function of pushing coins in the direction of the major axis of a substantially oval shape (or oval shape), the coin pushers 504A and 506A are machined in such a planar shape. Durability against mechanical strength and wear. The coin pushers 504A and 506A are arranged opposite to each other with the first rotation axis 332A in the periphery of the first rotary board 502A. In other words, the coin pushers 504A and 506A are arranged on the first rotary board 502A. They are arranged symmetrically with respect to one rotation axis 332A. The coin pushers 504A and 506A function as first coin pusher that rotates around the first rotation axis 332A as the first turntable 502A rotates.

Similar to the first turntable 502A, the surfaces of the second to twelfth turntables 502B to 502L have the same planar shape as the coin pushers 504A and 506A, and the second to twelfth rotation axes 332B to 332B. A pair of coin pushers 504B to 504L and 506B to 506L having a columnar outer shape protruding in a direction parallel to 332L are provided. The coin pushers 504B to 504L and 506B to 506L are arranged opposite to each other with the rotation axis lines 332B to 332L around the periphery of the turntables 502B to 502L. In other words, the coin pushers 504B to 504L and 506B to 506L. Are arranged symmetrically with respect to the rotation axes 332B to 332L on the rotary plates 502B to 502L. The coin pushers 504B to 504L and 506B to 506L function as second to twelfth coin push means that rotate around the rotation axes 332B to 332L as the turntables 502B to 502L rotate.

The height of the coin pushers 504A, 504B, 506A, 506B functioning as the first and second coin push means (in other words, the protruding length from the surface of the turntable) is the third to twelfth coin push means. It is set large with respect to the height of the functioning coin pushers 504C to 504L and 506C to 506L. This is because, in order to convey a coin while changing the advancing angle of the coin, it is necessary to reliably push the coin even when the coin is inclined. The coin pushers 504C to 504L and 506C to 506L have the same height.

  The coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L may be formed integrally with the first to twelfth rotary plates 502A to 502L, or the ones made separately are used to appropriately form the first to twelfth rotary plates. It can also be formed fixed to 502A to 502L. In this embodiment, they are integrally formed from the viewpoint of reducing manufacturing costs. The coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L may be columnar bodies, or may be a rotatable roller type in which a support shaft is covered with a cylindrical collar. In the case of the roller type, there is an advantage that the wear of the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L is suppressed and durability can be enhanced.

  As described above, the second to twelfth rotation axes 332B to 332L are alternately arranged in a zigzag manner on the first and second axis arrangement lines 312 and 314. Coin pushers 504B corresponding to the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth rotation axes 332B, 332D, 332F, 332H, 332J, 332L disposed on the first axis array line 312; 504D, 504F, 504H, 504J, 504L and 506B, 506D, 506F, 506H, 506J, 506L constitute a first pusher group. Coin pushers 504C, 504E, 504G, 504I corresponding to the third, fifth, seventh, ninth, and eleventh rotation axes 332C, 332E, 332G, 332I, and 332K disposed on the second axis array line 314. , 504K and 506C, 506E, 506G, 506I and 506K constitute a second pusher group. The second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth turntables 502B, 502D, 502F, 502H, 502J, and 502L constitute a first turntable group, and the third, fifth, seventh, and third turntables. Ninth and eleventh turntables 502C, 502E, 502G, 502I, and 502K constitute a second turntable group.

  Gears 522B to 522L functioning as driven gears for rotationally driving the rotary plates 502B to 502L are provided coaxially on the back surfaces of the second to twelfth rotary plates 502B to 502L, respectively. The second to twelfth rotary disks 502B to 502L and the gears 522B to 522L are respectively formed with shaft insertion holes 510 shown in FIG. Corresponding support shafts 334B to 334L are inserted into these shaft insertion holes 510, respectively. The gears 522B to 522L may be formed integrally with the second to twelfth turntables 502B to 502L, or may be formed separately and fixed to the turntables 502B to 502L by an appropriate method. it can. It suffices that the second to twelfth rotary disks 502B to 502L and the gears 522B to 522L can rotate integrally. In this embodiment, they are integrally formed from the viewpoint of reducing manufacturing cost and improving coaxial accuracy.

  The gears 522B to 522L are adjacent to each other. That is, the gear 522C meshes with the gears 522B and 522D. Similarly, the gear 522E meshes with the gears 522D and 522F, and the gear 522G meshes with the gears 522F and 522H. The gear 522I meshes with the gears 522H and 522J, and the gear 522K meshes with the gears 522J and 522L. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 10, the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth turntables 502B, 502D, 502F, 502H, 502J, and 502L belonging to the first turntable group are counterclockwise. , And the third, fifth, seventh, ninth and eleventh rotating disks 502C, 502E, 502G, 502I and 502K belonging to the second rotating disk group rotate clockwise. That is, the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth rotating disks 502B, 502D, 502F, 502H, 502J and 502L belonging to the first rotating disk group, and the third belonging to the second rotating disk group. The fifth, seventh, ninth and eleventh rotating disks 502C, 502E, 502G, 502I and 502K rotate in directions opposite to each other. Therefore, coin pushers 504B, 504D, 504F, 504H, 504J, 504L and 506B, 506D, 506F, 506H, 506J, 506L belonging to the first pusher group, and coin pushers 504C belonging to the second pusher group. , 504E, 504G, 504I, 504K and 506C, 506E, 506G, 506I, 506K rotate in opposite directions.

  In a pair of adjacent ones of the second to twelfth rotary plates 502B to 502L, the coin pushers 504B to 504L and 506B to 506L are arranged so as to maintain a predetermined rotational phase difference. For example, in the adjacent second and third turntables 502B and 502C, the coin pushers 504B and 504C and the coin pushers 506B and 506C are arranged so as to maintain a predetermined rotational phase difference. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, when a plane P including the second and third rotation axes 332B and 332C is defined, a coin that rotates when the coin pusher 504B that rotates rotates reaches the plane P. Coin pushers 504B and 504C are arranged so that pusher 504C reaches a position in front of plane P by a half of the gear pitch. Similarly, when the coin pusher 506B that rotates and reaches the plane P, the coin pusher 506C that rotates and reaches the position in front of the plane P by 1/2 of the gear pitch. The moving bodies 506B and 506C are arranged. The third turntable 502C and the fourth turntable 502D, the fourth turntable 502D and the fifth turntable 502E, the fifth turntable 502E and the sixth turntable 502F, the sixth turntable 502F and the seventh turntable 502G, the seventh Turntable 502G and eighth turntable 502H, eighth turntable 502H and ninth turntable 502I, ninth turntable 502I and tenth turntable 502J, tenth turntable 502J and eleventh turntable 502K, eleventh turntable The same applies to each of 502K and the twelfth rotating disk 502L.

  As described above, the coin pushers 504B to 504L and 506B to 506L rotate in synchronization around the corresponding ones of the second to twelfth rotation axes 332B to 332L while maintaining a predetermined rotational phase difference. In addition, among the coin pushers 504B to 504L and 506B to 506L, those adjacent to each other in the rotation axis rotate in directions opposite to each other.

A gear 612 having a spur gear portion 622 and a bevel gear portion 626 is coaxially provided on the back surface of the first rotating disk 502A. A gear 614 having a spur gear portion 624 and a bevel gear portion 628 is provided coaxially on the back surface of the gear 522B of the second rotating disk 502B. The two gears 612 and 614 have the same shape, and the bevel gear portions 626 and 628 each have a cone angle of about 30 degrees. In other words, the bevel gear portions 626 and 628 each have a cone angle corresponding to the angle α formed by the first rotation axis 332A and the second rotation axis 332B.

  The bevel gear portion 626 of the gear 612 and the bevel gear portion 628 of the gear 614 mesh with each other. Therefore, the first and second turntables 502A and 502B rotate in directions opposite to each other. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the first turntable 502A rotates clockwise, and the second turntable 502B rotates counterclockwise. Accordingly, the coin pushers 504A and 506A and the coin pushers 504B and 506B rotate in directions opposite to each other. Also in the first and second turntables 502A and 502B, the coin pushers 504A and 504B and the coin pushers 506A and 506B are arranged so as to maintain a predetermined rotational phase difference. As described above, the coin pushers 504A and 504B and the coin pushers 506A and 506B rotate synchronously while maintaining a predetermined rotational phase difference in the opposite directions around the first and second rotation axes 332A and 332B. To do.

  As described above, the bevel gear portions 626 and 628 have a cone angle corresponding to the angle α formed by the first rotation axis 332A and the second rotation axis 332B. Therefore, the first and second rotating discs 502A are formed in a state where the angle α formed by the first and second rotation axes 332A and 332B is formed while the first and second gears 612 and 614 are simply engaged. , 502B can be rotationally driven.

  The spur gear portion 622 and the bevel gear portion 626 may be formed integrally, or may be formed separately and fixed to each other by an appropriate method. In this embodiment, they are integrally formed from the viewpoint of reducing manufacturing cost and improving coaxial accuracy. The same applies to the spur gear portion 624 and the bevel gear portion 628. The gear 612 can be formed integrally with the rotating disk 502A, and the gear 614 can be formed integrally with the gear 522B. When formed integrally, it is advantageous to reduce the manufacturing cost and increase the coaxial accuracy. In this embodiment, it is formed integrally. However, it is formed integrally by fixing them separately by an appropriate method. Of course, it is also possible. The first and second rotating disks 502A and 502B and the gears 612 and 614 may be configured in any manner as long as they can rotate together.

(Driving force transmission mechanism)
As shown in FIGS. 17 to 19, the driving force transmission mechanism 600 is provided coaxially with the gear 602 disposed on the back side of the rotating disk 106 of the coin delivery device 10, the gear 604 that meshes with the gear 602, and the gear 604. the torque limiter 611 and the gear 6 10 installed, the gear 606 meshing with the gear 6 10, and a gear 606 coaxial with the gear 608 together with. The gear 602 is fixed to the rotating disk 106, and the gear 608 meshes with the spur gear portion 622 of the gear 612.

  When the rotating disk 106 is rotated by the driving means 108 of the coin delivery device 10, the gear 602 rotates integrally with the rotating disk 106, and the rotational driving force is transmitted to the gear 612 via the gears 604, 610, 606 and 608. Is done. The gear 612 to which the rotational driving force is transmitted rotates, and the rotational driving force is transmitted to the gears 522B to 522L via the gear 614. As a result, all of the gears 612 and 614 and the gears 522B to 522L rotate, and all of the first to twelfth rotary disks 502A to 502L rotate.

  The driving force transmission mechanism 600 is configured such that the rotating disk 106 of the coin delivery device 10 and the first rotating disk 502A of the coin transport device 20 have a predetermined rotational speed difference. That is, the rotational speeds of the rotating disk 106 and the first rotating disk 502A are set so that the first rotating disk 502A rotates 180 degrees every time the rotating disk 106 rotates 45 degrees. By setting the rotation speed in this way, when each of the eight pushing edges 138 of the rotating disk 106 cooperates with the coin receiving means 112 to send out coins, the coin pushing bodies 504A and 506A are fed out. Move to the optimal position to push each of the coins. In other words, all of the coins sent out by each of the eight pushing edges 138 included in the rotating disk 106 can be reliably pushed by either one of the coin pushing bodies 504A and 506A.

  Note that when the overload prevention function of the driving means 108 is activated and the rotating disk 106 is reversely rotated, the first to twelfth rotary disks 502A to 502L are also reversely rotated. When the first to twelfth rotary plates 502A to 502L are reversely rotated, the coins in the coin guide passage 210 are pushed in the reverse direction by the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L. The pushed coins are conveyed from the outlet 204 toward the inlet 202, and a part of the coins is returned to the rotating disk 106 via the coin feeding outlet 190. Also in this case, since the optimum positional relationship between the rotary disk 106 and the first rotary disk 502A is maintained, the coins in the coin guide passage 210 are smoothly moved onto the rotary disk 106.

The 611a central axis which is the input shaft of the torque limiter 6 11 is fixed by being connected to the rotary shaft 604a of the gear 604, not the fitting hole of the gear 610 (shown on the outer circumferential surface 611b which is an output shaft of the torque limiter 611 ) Is inserted and fixed. As a result, when an excessive torque greater than or equal to a predetermined value is applied to the gear 604, the torque is interrupted and the gear 604 idles. In other words, by including biting of coins in the coin transporting device 20 occurs when the applied an excessive rotational resistance of more than a predetermined value to the first to twelfth rotating disk 502A~502L, the torque limiter 6 11 The rotational force is released between the input shaft and the output shaft so that the first to twelfth rotary disks 502A to 502L are not forcibly rotated. Accordingly, since an excessive load is not applied to the related parts, there is an advantage that damage to the parts is prevented and durability is improved. Further, since an excessive load is not applied, the required component strength is small, and there is an advantage that the component can be downsized and the entire apparatus can be downsized.

As shown in FIG. 19, a rotation monitoring sensor 650 that monitors the rotation state of the first to twelfth rotary disks 502 </ b> A to 502 </ b> L is provided on the rotation shaft 606 a of the gear 606. The rotation monitoring sensor 650 includes an encoder disk 652 fixed to the lower end of the rotation shaft 606a and a transmission type photoelectric sensor 654. The encoder disc 652 is formed with a plurality of through holes (not shown) arranged at equal intervals along the periphery. The photoelectric sensor 654 includes a light projector (not shown) that emits light toward the through hole of the encoder disk 652 and a light receiver (not shown) that receives the light from the light projector and generates an electrical signal. Is done. When the first to twelfth turntables 502A to 502L rotate, the rotation monitoring sensor 650 outputs a pulse signal synchronized with the rotation angle. In other words, the rotation monitoring sensor 650 functions as a sensor that monitors the state of rotational movement of the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L. By monitoring the state of this pulse signal, the operating state of the torque limiter 611 can be detected. That is, when the torque limiter 611 is inactive, a pulse signal having a predetermined cycle is output from the rotation monitoring sensor 650, and when the torque limiter 611 is in an operating state, a pulse signal having a cycle longer than the predetermined cycle is output from the rotation monitoring sensor. Since the output is 650, the non-operation / operation state of the torque limiter 611 can be detected by measuring the period of the pulse signal. When the torque limiter 611 is actuated to stop rotation of the rotary disk 106 stops the electric motor 152. As a result, the coin feeding from the coin sending device 10 is stopped and the coin is prevented from continuing to be supplied to the coin transport device 20 where the coin is biting, so that an unnecessary load is applied to the related parts. Can be prevented, and durability is improved.

The torque limiter 6 11, for example, those known, such as a torque limiter having a steel ball and a concave groove which is disclosed in JP-A-2001-263364 can be used, in particular, face each other across an axis of rotation What has a pair of concave groove is preferable. In that case, the non-operating state of the torque limiter 6 11 (i.e., a state where the steel ball is locked in the groove), so is caused by the rotation angle of 180 degrees, the rotating disk 106 of the coin delivery device 10 and the coin transporting The rotational phase difference between the device 20 and the first turntable 502A is maintained.

(Coin transport unit)
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the first coin transport unit 21 includes a first base portion 300A and a first top plate portion 400A provided on the first base portion 300A. As shown in FIG. 10, the first base portion 300A includes first to fourth rotation axes 332A to 332D and first to fourth rotation plates 502A to 502D. In other words, the first to fourth rotating axes 332A to 332D and the first to fourth rotating disks 502A to 502D are arranged in the first coin transport unit 21. 300 A of 1st base parts have the cover body 180, the 1st member 306A, and the 2nd member 308A which were formed integrally with the storage bowl 102. As shown in FIG.

  The cover body 180 has an inclined surface 181 formed in parallel with the upward upper surface 104U of the first attachment portion 104B, and an opening 188 is formed in the upper left portion of the cover body 180. A recess 182 having a peripheral wall 184 is formed around the opening 188, and a part of the recess 182 is further retracted to form a partial annular surface 186. The bottom surface 183 of the concave portion 182 is parallel to the upward upper surface 104U of the first mounting portion 104B of the mounting base 104. In other words, the bottom surface 183 has an inclination angle of about 60 degrees with respect to the horizontal plane in the same manner as the holding surface 134 of the rotating disk 106. . The depth of the recess 182 (in other words, the height of the peripheral wall 184) is set to be greater than the thickness of the thickest coin. A rotating disc 502A is disposed in the opening 188, and the above-described inlet guide member 450 is disposed in the upper right portion of the recess 182.

The first member 306A of the first base portion 300A includes left and right divided portions 306Aa and 306Ab, and a portion 315A of the through hole 315 shown in FIG. 7 is formed in a state where these divided portions 306Aa and 306Ab are combined. The The second member 308A of the first base portion 300A has a flat plate-like first plate portion 308Aa and a pair of second plate portions 308Ab extending vertically from both side ends of the first plate portion 308Aa. The first plate portion 308Aa is provided with third and fourth support shafts 334C and 334D. A third support shaft 334C is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 510 of the third rotary plate 502C and the gear 522C, and a fourth support shaft 334D is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 510 of the fourth rotary plate 502D and the gear 522D. . An opening 308Ac is formed below the first plate portion 308Aa. The second member 308A is attached to the second attachment portion 104C by fixing the second plate portion 308Ab to the second attachment portion 104C. The second mounting portion 104C, the second support shaft 334 B projecting from the first plate portion 308Aa through the opening 308Ac is provided. The shaft insertion hole 510 of the second rotating disk 502B, gear 522B and the gear 614, the second supporting shaft 334 B is inserted. As shown in FIG. 5, a portion 104Ca that is bent in an L shape is formed at the upper end of the second attachment portion 104C, and in the state where the second member 308A is attached to the second attachment portion 104C, A space 308Ad is formed between the first plate portion 308Aa of the member 308A and the second attachment portion 104C of the attachment base 104. Within this space 308Ad, part of the gear 614 are accommodated. The first member 306A of the first base portion 300A is fixed on the second member 308A with the lower portion thereof disposed on the partial annular surface 186.

  A first support shaft 334 </ b> A is provided at the upper left portion of the first mounting portion 104 </ b> B of the mounting base 104. The first support shaft 334 </ b> A is arranged to be coaxial with the opening 188 of the cover body 180 in a state where the cover body 180 (that is, the storage bowl 102) is attached to the attachment base 104. A first support shaft 334A is inserted into a shaft insertion hole (not shown) of the first rotating disk 502A and the gear 612. As a result, the first turntable 502A is disposed in the opening 188 of the cover body 180. Further, a gear 604 and a gear 608 are disposed on the first mounting portion 104 </ b> B of the mounting base 104.

  The first top plate portion 400A has a first coin guide groove portion 406A for forming a first coin guide passage portion 210A corresponding to the first to fourth rotation axes 332A to 332D. The second curved surface portion 228 described above is formed in the first top plate portion 400A. A groove 422 is formed in the first top plate portion 400A to prevent contact when the coin pushers 504A to 504D and 506A to 506D rotate around the first to fourth rotation axes 332A to 332D.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the 1st coin conveyance unit 21 has the connection part 251 for connecting the 2nd coin conveyance unit 22 to the upper end. In the connecting portion 251, notched edges 252a and 252b are formed in the second member 308A of the first top plate portion 400A and the first base portion 300A. The cutout edges 252a and 252b are formed in an arc shape along the contact preventing portion of the coin pushers 504D and 506D in the groove 422, and extend upward and rightward from the arc-shaped portion. Between the cutout edges 252a and 252b, an opening 253 exposing the gear 522D and an outlet 211Aa of the first coin guide passage portion 210A are formed. At the upper right end of the first member 306A of the first base portion 300A, there is provided a connecting protrusion 258 that protrudes upward from the notch edges 252a and 252b and is formed with a screw insertion hole 259. A projection 268 for connection of the second coin transport unit 22 to be described later can be inserted between the second top member 308A of the first top plate portion 400A and the first base portion 300A at the upper left end of the first coin transport unit 21. A groove portion 255 is formed. A screw insertion hole 256 is formed in the upper left portion of the first top plate portion 400A, and a screw hole 257 is formed in the upper left portion of the second member 308A of the first base portion 300A.

  As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the second coin transport unit 22 includes a second base portion 300B and a second top plate portion 400B provided on the second base portion 300B. As shown in FIG. 10, fifth to tenth rotation axes 332E to 332J and fifth to tenth rotation disks 502E to 502J are arranged on the second base portion 300B. In other words, the fifth to tenth rotation axes 332E to 332J and the fifth to tenth rotation plates 502E to 502J are arranged in the second coin transport unit 22. The second base portion 300B has a first member 306B and a second member 308B.

  A portion (not shown) of the through hole 315 shown in FIG. 7 is formed in the first member 306B of the second base portion 300B. The second member 308B is provided with fifth to tenth support shafts 334E to 34J. A fifth support shaft 334E is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 510 of the fifth rotating disk 502E and the gear 522E. Similarly, the sixth to tenth support shafts 334F to 334J are inserted into the shaft insertion holes 510 of the sixth to tenth rotating disks 502F to 502J and the gears 522F to 522J.

  The second top plate portion 400B has a second coin guide groove portion 406B for forming a second coin guide passage portion 210B corresponding to the fifth to tenth rotation axes 332E to 332J. Grooves 422 are formed in the second top plate portion 400B to prevent contact when the coin pushers 504E to 504J and 506E to 506J rotate around the fifth to tenth rotation axes 332E to 332J.

The second coin transport unit 22 has connecting portions 261A and 261B for connecting the first and third coin transport units 21 and 23 to the upper and lower ends thereof. Connecting portion 261A, 261B has the same configuration with a rotationally symmetrical with respect to symmetry axis CP. Therefore, only the connection unit 261A will be described, and the description of the connection unit 261B will be omitted.

In the connection portion 261A, notched edges 262a and 262b are formed in the second member 308B of the second top plate portion 400B and the second base portion 300B. The notched edges 262a and 262b are formed in an arc shape along the contact preventing portion of the coin pushers 504J and 506J in the groove 422, and extend upward and rightward from the arc-shaped portion. An opening 263 that exposes the gear 522J and an outlet 211Ba of the second coin guide passage portion 210B are formed between the notched edges 262a and 262b. In the connection portion 261B, an entrance 211Bb of the second coin guide passage portion 210B is formed. At the upper right end of the first member 306B of the second base portion 300B, there is provided a connecting protrusion 268 that protrudes upward from the notch edges 262a and 262b and is formed with a screw insertion hole 269. At the upper left end of the second coin transport unit 22, the first member 306B of the second base portion 300B is formed with a holding piece 264 that protrudes from the surface to the second top plate portion 400B side and extends in a substantially L shape. Yes. This holding piece 26 4 between the second member 308B, third insertable groove 265 a connection projection 278 of the coin transporting unit 23 to be described later is formed. In the second base portion 300B, a screw insertion hole 266 is formed in the holding piece 264 of the first member 306B, and a screw hole 267 is formed in the upper left portion of the second member 308B.

The third coin transporting unit 23, as shown in FIGS. 14 and 16, a third base portion 300C, and a third top plate portion 400C provided on the third base portion 300 on the C, a coin releasing means 230, A coin payout detection sensor 240. As shown in FIG. 10, eleventh and twelfth rotation axes 332K and 332L and eleventh and twelfth turntables 502K and 502L are arranged in the third base portion 300C. In other words, the eleventh and twelfth rotation axes 332K and 332L and the eleventh and twelfth rotation disks 502K and 502L are disposed in the third coin transport unit 23. The third base portion 300C has a first member 306C and a second member 308C.

A part (not shown) of the through hole 315 shown in FIG. 7 is formed in the first member 306C of the third base portion 300C. The second member 308C, eleventh and twelfth pivot 334K, 334 L are provided. An eleventh support shaft 334K is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 510 of the eleventh rotating disk 502K and the gear 522K. A twelfth support shaft 334L is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 510 of the twelfth rotary disk 502L and the gear 522L.

  The third top plate portion 400C has a third coin guide groove portion 406C for forming a third coin guide passage portion 210C corresponding to the eleventh and twelfth rotation axes 332K and 332L. The third top plate portion 400C is provided with a groove 422 that prevents contact when the coin pushers 504K, 504L, 506K, and 506L rotate around the eleventh and twelfth rotation axes 332K and 332L.

  The third coin guide passage portion 210C is curved leftward about the twelfth rotation axis 332L, and extends substantially laterally toward the outlet 204 disposed on the left side. The region on the left side of the twelfth rotation axis 332L in the third coin guide passage portion 210C has a width wg that increases toward the exit 204 side. In other words, the third coin guide passage portion 210 </ b> C includes an exit passage region 220 having a coin guide surface 220 a that is inclined obliquely downward toward the exit 204. Thereby, it becomes easy to discharge | release a coin from the exit 204 toward diagonally downward.

The third coin transport unit 23 has a connecting portion 271 for connecting the second coin transport unit 22 to the lower end thereof. In the connection portion 271A, notched edges 272a and 272b are formed in the second member 308C of the third top plate portion 400C and the third base portion 300C. The cut-out edges 272a and 272b are formed in an arc shape along the contact preventing portion of the coin pushers 504K and 506K in the groove 422, and extend downward and leftward from the arc-shaped portion. Between the cut-out edges 272a and 272b, an opening 273 exposing the gear 522K and an inlet 211Cb of the third coin guide passage portion 210C are formed. At the lower left end of the first member 306C of the third base portion 300C, a connecting protrusion 278 that protrudes downward from the notch edges 272a and 272b and has a screw insertion hole 279 is provided. At the lower right end of the third coin transport unit 23, a groove portion into which the connection protrusion 268 of the second coin transport unit 22 can be inserted between the second top member 308C of the third top plate portion 400C and the third base portion 300C. 275 is formed. The right portion of the third top plate portion 400C screw insertion holes 276 are formed, on the right lower part of the second member 308 C of the third base portion 300 C and a screw hole 277 is formed.

  The coin discharge means 230 includes a frame 231 for mounting components, a flip roller 232 (see FIG. 7) that elastically contacts the peripheral surface of the coin, a flip roller 232 that rotatably supports the spindle ( The rotation lever 233 that rotates about the rotation lever 233 and the flip roller 232 biases the rotation lever 233 toward the exit passage region 220 so that the flip roller 232 faces the exit passage region 220 of the third coin guide passage portion 210C. A string spring 234 and a stopper 235 for receiving and holding the rotating lever 233 at a stationary position where the flip roller 232 faces the exit passage area 220 are configured. The frame 231 is provided with a downward E-shaped stopper 237 bent at a right angle to the surface thereof, and a locking pin 238 is provided on the upper part of the rotating lever 233. One end of the string winding spring 234 is hooked in the groove of the stopper metal 237, and the other end is hooked on the locking pin 238. The flip roller 232 is exposed to the outlet passage region 220 of the third coin guide passage portion 210C through an arc-like flip roller slot 236 formed in the third top plate portion 400C. The coin releasing means 230 is attached to the third coin transport unit 23 by fixing the frame 231 to the third base portion 300C with screws (not shown) penetrating the third top plate portion 400C.

  The coin payout detection sensor 240 is disposed so as to straddle the exit passage area 220 of the third coin guide passage portion 210 </ b> C immediately before the exit 204. The coin payout detection sensor 240 is a photoelectric sensor having a channel-shaped resin-made outer case 242 and having a projector built in one of the two columnar portions 244 and a photoreceiver built in the other, facing each other. . When the coin passes between the two columnar portions 244 in the exit passage region 220, the optical path is blocked, and the coins are detected one by one by the detection signal output based on the light path.

(Coin transport unit connection)
When connecting the first coin transporting unit 21 and the second coin transporting unit 22, while engaged and gear 522E exposed from the connecting portion 261 B of the opening 263 and gear 522D exposed from the opening 253 of the connecting portion 251, the connection The protrusion 268 of the part 261 B is inserted into the groove part 255 of the connection part 251, and the protrusion 258 of the connection part 251 is inserted into the groove part 265 of the connection part 261 B. When the gears 552D and 552E are meshed with each other, the positions of the teeth of the gears 552D and 552E are adjusted so that the predetermined phase difference is generated between the fourth rotary plate 502D and the fifth rotary plate 502E. When the second coin transport unit 22 is pressed against the first coin transport unit 21 in this state, the notch edges 252a and 252b of the connection part 251 abut against the notch edges 262a and 262b of the connection part 261 and insertion is stopped. Is done. In other words, the notch edges 252a, 252b and 262a, 262b function as the butting surfaces for positioning. Further, screws (not shown) inserted into the screw insertion holes 256 of the connection part 251 and the screw insertion holes 269 of the connection part 261 B are screwed into the screw holes 257 of the connection part 251. Similarly, screws (not shown) inserted into the screw insertion holes 266 of the connection portion 261 and the screw insertion holes 259 of the connection portion 251 are screwed into the screw holes 267 of the connection portion 261. As a result, the second coin transport unit 22 is fixed to the first coin transport unit 21.

When connecting the second coin transporting unit 22 and a third coin conveyance unit 23, while engaged with the gear 522K exposed through the opening 273 of the gear 522J and the connecting part 271 exposed from the connecting portion 2 61A of the opening 263, connected with inserting the protruding portion 278 parts 271 in the groove 265 of the connection portion 261 a, inserting the protruding portion 268 of the connecting portion 261 a in the groove 275 of the connection portion 271. When the gears 552J and 552K are engaged with each other, the positions of the teeth of the gears 552J and 552K are adjusted so that the predetermined phase difference is generated between the tenth rotary plate 502J and the eleventh rotary plate 502K. Pressed against the third coin conveyance unit 23 in this state to the second coin transporting unit 22, notch edge 262a of the connection portion 261 A, notch edge 272a of 262b is connected portion 271, is inserted in contact with 272b Stopped. In other words, the notched edges 262a, 262b and 272a, 272b function as the butting surfaces for positioning. Furthermore, it screwed inserted screws into the screw insertion hole 279 of the screw insertion hole 266 and the connection portion 271 of the connection portion 261 A (not shown) into the screw hole 267 of the connecting portion 261 A. Similarly, screwed inserted screws into the screw insertion hole 269 of the screw insertion hole 276 and the connection portion 261 A of the connecting portion 271 (not shown) into the screw hole 277 of the connecting portion 271. Thus, the third coin transporting unit 2 3 is fixed to the second coin transporting unit 2 2.

Thus, the first and third coin transport units 21 and 23 are connected via the second coin transport unit 22, and the states of FIGS. 1 to 3 and FIGS. 7 to 10 are realized. That is, the base body 300 is configured by the first to third base portions 300A to 300C, and the top plate 400 is configured by the first to third top plate portions 400A to 400C. First to third coin guide passage portions 210A to 210C are communicated to form a coin guide passage 210. 7, in the base body 300, the first members 306A to 306C of the first to third base portions 300A to 300C constitute the first member 306, and the first to third base portions 300A to 300C. The second members 308 </ b> A to 308 </ b> C constitute the second member 308.

  That is, the base body 300 has a structure in which the first member 306 is stacked on the second member 308, and the first member 306 has a through hole 315. The through hole 315 has a planar shape in which eleven circular holes having the same inner dimension are connected in a zigzag manner with a part thereof being overlapped, and as shown in FIG. It has the 1st opening 315a with a small internal dimension arrange | positioned at the surface side, and the 2nd opening 315b with a large internal dimension arrange | positioned at the back surface side. The back surface side of the through hole 315 is closed by the second member 308, and a recess 316 is formed in the base body 300.

On the surface 302 side of the base body 300, the second to twelfth rotary disks 502B to 502L are accommodated in the first opening 315a, and the gears 522B to 522L are accommodated in the second opening 315b. In other words, the second to twelfth rotary disks 502B to 502L and the gears 522B to 522L are housed in the recess 316. The bottom surface 318 of the recess 316 is provided with third to twelfth support shafts 334C to 334L. Third to twelfth support shaft 334C~334L, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 11, the fixing screws 310 inserted in the screw hole 340 from the rear surface 304 side of the base member 300 via the first member 3 06 The base body 300 is fixed.

  The surfaces of the first to twelfth turntables 502 </ b> A to 502 </ b> L are arranged to be substantially flush with the surface 302 of the base body 300. Therefore, the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L provided on the respective surfaces of the first to twelfth rotary plates 502A to 502L protrude above the surface 302 of the base body 300. In other words, the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L project into the coin guide passage 210, respectively.

  The coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L projecting into the coin guide passage 210 rotate in accordance with the rotation of the first to twelfth rotary plates 502A to 502L and push the coins in the coin guide passage 210. . The pushed coin is moved in the coin guide passage 210 while being guided on the circumferential surface by the left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214 and guided on the front and back surfaces by the front and back guide surfaces 216 and 218. In this case, the range of the outer diameter (diameter) or thickness of the coin that can be transported is widened. That is, since the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L protruding into the coin guide passage 210 are disposed between the left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214, the left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214 and the coin pushers 504A to 504L. , 506A to 506L (in other words, larger than the interval generated between the left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214 and the trajectory of the rotational movement of the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L). And if it is a coin which has the outer diameter (diameter) of the range smaller than the space | interval of the left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214, either one of the left and right guide surfaces 212 and 214 and the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to It is moved and supported while being supported by 506L. Accordingly, the outer diameter range of the coins that can be conveyed is widened. On the other hand, since coins are pushed and conveyed one by one by the coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L, adjacent coins do not overlap in the coin guide passage 210. Therefore, even if the distance between the front and back guide surfaces 212 and 214 is set wide, coin clogging does not occur. Therefore, the thickness range of the coins that can be conveyed is widened.

(Operation of coin dispensing device)
Next, the operation of the coin payout device 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. In actual operation, a large number of coins are held to the extent that they are piled up in the holding bowl 102. Here, in order to simplify the explanation, it is assumed that four coins C1 to C4 are held in the holding bowl 102.

  FIG. 20 shows a state in which the coins C1 to C4 are conveyed by the rotating disk 106 of the coin delivery device 10, and the coin C1 is placed on the four holding surfaces 134 of the eight holding surfaces 134 of the rotating disk 106. To C4 (C4 is not shown) are held. Each of the coins C <b> 1 to C <b> 4 is moved by being pushed by the coin locking body 128 of the rotating disk 106 that rotates counterclockwise, and the coin C <b> 1 approaches the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112.

  When the rotating disk 106 further rotates, as shown in FIG. 21, the coin C1 is pushed by the coin locking body 128 in contact with the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112 and moved in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk 106. The Then, in a state where the coin C1 is pushed out of the rotary disk 106, the coin C1 is stopped at a delivery position supported by the tip of the coin locking body 128 and the peripheral wall 184. When the coin pusher 504A that rotates in the clockwise direction contacts the peripheral surface of the coin C1 at the delivery position, the coin C1 is pushed by the coin pusher 504A.

  As the first rotating plate 502A rotates, the coin C1 is pushed by the coin pusher 504A and the circumferential surface of the coin C1 is pushed against the circumferential wall 184 as shown in FIG. Then, the coin C1 is guided by the peripheral wall 184 and the left guide surface 212 of the coin guide passage 210 and moved upward, and is introduced into the coin guide passage 210 through the inlet 202. Further, the next coin C <b> 2 pushed by the coin locking body 128 of the rotating disk 106 contacts the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112.

  When the first turntable 502A further rotates, the coin C1 is continuously pushed by the coin pusher 504A, and the circumferential surface of the coin C1 is pressed against the right guide surface 214 of the coin guide passage 210 as shown in FIG. It is moved upwards. At this time, the coin pusher 504B approaches the coin C1 by the counterclockwise rotation of the second turntable 502B. Similarly to the case of the coin C1, the coin C2 pushed out of the rotating disk 106 by the coin engaging body 128 and the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112 is pushed by the coin pusher 506A and is thus surrounded by the peripheral wall 184. The peripheral surface is guided to move upward. The next coin C3 pushed by the coin locking body 128 of the rotating disk 106 approaches the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 24, the coin pusher 504B contacts the coin C1 and pushes the coin C1, and the coin C1 is moved upward while being guided by the right guide surface 214 of the coin guide passage 210. The coin C2 pushed by the coin pusher 506A is introduced into the coin guide passage 210 through the inlet 202. The coin C3 is pushed by the coin locking body 128 while being in contact with the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112, and is moved in the circumferential direction of the rotary disk 106.

  In the movement of the coin C1 from FIG. 22 to FIG. 24, the coin C1 is moved from the first guide surface portion 222 of the back guide surface 218 to the second guide surface portion 224, and the advance angle of the coin C1 is relative to the horizontal plane. It changes from about 60 degrees to about 90 degrees. At this time, the coin C1 is guided by the first curved surface portion 226 formed between the first and second guide surface portions 222 and 224 and the second curved surface portion 228 disposed so as to face the coin C1. Gradually changes, so that the coin C1 is smoothly moved in the coin guide passage 210.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 25, the coin C1 pushed by the coin pusher 504B is moved upward while being guided by the left guide surface 212 of the coin guide passage 210. A coin pusher 504C that rotates in accordance with the clockwise rotation of the third rotating board 502C approaches the coin C1. The coin C2 pushed by the coin pusher 506A is moved upward while gradually changing the advancing angle by being guided by the first and second curved surface portions 226 and 228 as in the case of the coin C1. . The coin C3 pushed out of the rotary disk 106 is pushed by the coin pusher 504A. The next coin C4 pushed by the coin locking body 128 of the rotating disk 106 approaches the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112.

Next, as shown in FIG. 26, the coin C1 is moved upward by the push of the coin pusher 504C, the coin C2 is moved upward by the push of the coin pusher 506B, and the coin C3 is moved by the coin pusher 504A. It is moved upward by pushing. The coin C 4 is pushed by the coin locking body 128 in contact with the receiving edge 146 of the coin receiving means 112 and moved in the circumferential direction of the rotary disk 106.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 27, the coin C1 is moved upward by the push of the coin pusher 504E, and the coin C2 is moved upward by the push of the coin pusher 506C. The coin C3 is moved upward by the push of the coin pusher 504B, and the coin C4 is moved upward by the push of the coin pusher 506A.

  The state shown in FIG. 28 is caused by repeating the operation of the coin pushing mechanism 500 described above. When the twelfth turntable 502L further rotates counterclockwise from this state, the coin C1 pushed by the coin pusher 504L is guided to the right guide surface 214 of the coin guide passage 210 as shown in FIG. The position of the coin releasing means 230 is reached. When the coin C1 is further pushed by the coin pusher 504L, the coin C1 in contact with the repelling roller 232 pushes up the turning lever 233 of the coin discharge means 230 against the urging force of the string spring 234, and enters the outlet 204. Move towards. When the maximum diameter portion of the coin C1 passes the flip roller 232, the rotation lever 233 returns downward due to the elasticity of the string spring 234, and the coin C1 is flipped toward the outlet 204 by the rotational force at that time. It is. As shown in FIG. 30, the coin C <b> 1 is detected by the coin payout detection sensor 240 immediately after being flipped and then discharged from the outlet 204. Thereafter, the same operation is repeated for the coins C2 to C4, whereby the coins C2 to C4 are discharged from the outlet 204.

  FIGS. 31 to 33 show a third coin transport unit 23A constituting the coin transport device in the coin payout device according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the coin payout device 1 of the first embodiment, an outlet 204 is provided on the left side of the coin guide passage 210 so that coins are paid out toward the left side of the coin transport device 20. On the other hand, the third coin transport unit 23A shown in FIGS. 31 to 33 is provided with an outlet 204 on the right side of the coin guide passage 210 so that coins can be paid out toward the right side of the coin transport device 20. The third coin transport unit 23 is different from the third coin transport unit 23 in FIGS. The rest is the same as the third coin transport unit 23. Therefore, in FIGS. 31 to 33, the same or corresponding components as those of the third coin transport unit 23 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the third coin transport unit 23A, as shown in FIGS. 31 to 33, the third coin guide passage portion 210CA has an exit passage region 220A formed above the twelfth rotation axis 332L. The outlet passage area 220A is curved to the right and extends substantially laterally toward the outlet 204 disposed on the right. Also in the outlet passage area 220A, a coin guide surface 220a that is inclined obliquely downward toward the outlet 204 is formed in the same manner as the outlet passage area 220 shown in FIG.

  The shape and arrangement of the coin ejection means 230 </ b> A are changed so as to match the right side arrangement of the outlet 204. That is, the flip roller 232A, the rotation lever 233A, the string winding spring 234A, the stopper 235A, the stopper 237A, and the locking pin 238A are the same as the roller 232, the rotation lever 233, the string winding spring 234, the stopper 235, and the stopper 237 in FIG. Further, it corresponds to a structure in which the locking pins 238 are arranged so as to be substantially opposite to the left and right with respect to the symmetry axis of FIG. The same applies to the arc-shaped flip roller slot 236A formed in the third top plate portion 400C.

  The third coin transport unit 23A has the same connection portion 271 as the third coin transport unit 23 of the first embodiment. Therefore, it can be connected to the second coin transport unit 22 in FIGS. 12 and 13. In other words, the third coin transport unit 23A can be used instead of the third coin transport unit 23 of the first embodiment. Therefore, if the third coin transport unit 23 and the third coin transport unit 23A are appropriately selected and used, the outlet 204 can be arranged on either the left or right side.

(Modification)
In addition, this invention is not limited to said Example, A various change is possible. For example, the first and third coin transport units 21 and 23 may be connected via two or more second coin transport units 22. In this case, the coin transport distance can be adjusted. The first coin transport unit 21 is provided with rotation axes 332A to 332D and turntables 502A to 502D, and the second coin transfer unit 22 is provided with rotation axes 332E to 332J and turntables 502E to 502J. The third coin transport unit 23 is provided with rotation axes 332K and 332L and turntables 502K and 502L, respectively. The number of rotation axes and turntables arranged in the first to third coin transport units 21 to 23 is as follows. Changes can be made as appropriate. Thereby, since the length of a coin conveyance unit can be changed, the coin conveyance apparatus 20 of arbitrary length is obtained in steps by the combination of the coin conveyance unit from which length differs.

  Further, the rotary plates 502A to 502L are provided with a pair of coin pushers 504A to 504L and 506A to 506L. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, each of the rotary plates 502A to 502L is provided. One coin pusher can also be provided. However, it is preferable to provide two or more coin pushers on each of the turntables 502A to 502L in order to increase the conveyance efficiency.

  The present invention can be suitably used for a coin processing device that processes coins such as coins and medals. For example, the present invention is preferably applied to a money changer, a vending machine, a ticket vending machine, a game machine, and the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Coin dispensing apparatus 10 Coin delivery apparatus 20 Coin conveyance apparatus 21 1st coin conveyance unit 22 2nd coin conveyance unit 23, 23A 3rd coin conveyance unit 102 Reservation bowl 102A Head part 102B Coin slot 102C Exterior part 104 Mounting base 104A Mount Placement part 104B First attachment part 104C Second attachment part 104L, 104R Support side wall 104U Upward upper surface 106 Rotating disk 108 Driving means 112 Coin receiving means 118 Coin dropping means 122 Bottom wall 124 Vertical groove 126 Vertical wall 128 Coin locking body 132 Center Protrusion 133 Protrusion 134 Holding surface 136 Support shelf 138 Pushing edge 142 Riding slope 144 Downstream edge 145 Coin receiving body 146 Receiving edge 147 Top 149 Stepped slope 152 Electric motor 154 Reduction gear 174 Free-running support means 180 Cover body 81 Inclined surface 182 Concave portion 183 Bottom surface 184 Peripheral wall 186 Partial annular surface 188 Opening 190 Coin delivery outlet 200 Coin guide portion 202 Entrance 204 Exit 210 Coin guide passage 210A First coin guide passage portion 210B Second coin guide passage portion 210C Third coin guide Passage portion 210CA Third coin guide passage portion 211Aa, 211Ba Exit 211Bb, 211Cb Entrance 212 Left guide surface 214 Right guide surface 216 Front guide surface 218 Back guide surface 220, 220A Exit passage area 220a Coin guide surface 222 1st Guide surface portion 224 Second guide surface portion 226 First curved surface portion 228 Second curved surface portion 230, 230A Coin release means 231, 231A Frame 232, 232A Repelling roller 233, 233A Rotating lever 234, 234A String winding spring 235 235A Stopper 236, 236A Repelling roller long hole 237, 237A Locking bracket 238, 238A Locking pin 240 Coin payout detection sensor 242 Exterior case 244 Column-shaped portion 251 Connection portion 252a, 252b Notch edge 253 Opening 255 Groove portion 256, 259 Screw Insertion hole 257 Screw hole 258 Projection part 261A, 261B Connection part 262a, 262b Notch edge 263 Opening 264 Holding piece 265, 269 Groove part 266 Screw insertion hole 267 Screw hole 268 Projection part 271 Connection part 272a, 272b Notch edge 273 Opening 275 Groove 276, 279 Screw insertion hole 277 Screw hole 278 Projection 300 Base body 300A First base portion 300B Second base portion 300C Third base portion 302 Front surface 304 Back surface 306 First member 306A First member 306Aa, 306 Ab divided portion 306B first member 306C first member 308 second member 308A second member 308Aa first plate portion 308Ab second plate portion 308Ac opening 308Ad space 308B second member 308C second member 310 fixing screw 312 first shaft arrangement Line 314 Second shaft array line 315 Through-hole 315a First opening 315b Second opening 316 Recess 332A to 332L First to twelfth rotation axis 334A to 334L First to twelfth support shaft 340 Screw holes 342 and 344 Alignment Hole 400 Top plate 400A First top plate portion 400B Second top plate portion 400C Third top plate portion 402 Front surface 404 Back surface 406 Coin guide groove 406A First coin guide groove portion 406B Second coin guide groove portion 406C Third coin guide Groove 410 bottom 412 First side surface 414 Second side surface 416 Curve 418 Curve 422 Groove 432, 434 Positioning projection 450 Entrance guide member 452 Mounting portion 454 Disc body 456 Projection portion 458 Downward side surface 500 Coin pushing mechanism 502A to 502L First ˜Twelfth rotary disc 502Aa Recesses 504A to 504L, 506A to 506L Coin pusher (coin pusher)
510 shaft insertion hole 522 B ~522L gear (third gear)
600 Driving force transmission mechanism 602, 604, 606, 608, 610 Gear 611 Torque limiter 611a Center shaft 611b Outer peripheral surface 612 Gear (first gear)
614 Gear (second gear)
622, 624 Spur gear portion 626, 628 Bevel gear portion 650 Rotation monitoring sensor 652 Encoder disc 654 Photoelectric sensor

Claims (8)

A coin transport device for receiving coins sent one by one at the entrance and transporting them to the exit,
A coin guide passage that has left and right guide surfaces for guiding the peripheral surface of the coin, and front and back guide surfaces that respectively guide the front and back surfaces of the coin, and extends from the entrance toward the exit;
First to n-th rotating discs arranged in a predetermined order along the left guide surface or the right guide surface and rotating about first to n-th rotation axes substantially perpendicular to the front and back guide surfaces; ,
Each of the first to n-th rotating discs protrudes from the surface located on the coin guide passage side into the coin guide passage, and is disposed opposite to the corresponding rotation axis, and the corresponding rotating disc First and second coin pushers that rotate about the corresponding rotation axis by rotating together with
A first gear and a second gear which are provided on the back surface side opposite to the coin guide passage side in each of the first and second rotating discs and mesh with each other;
Each of the second to n-th turntables is provided on the back surface side opposite to the coin guide passage side, and a plurality of adjacent two turntables among the second to n-th turntables are engaged with each other. A third gear,
A base part that constitutes the back guide surface and that is formed with openings for accommodating the plurality of third gears;
A pair of side surfaces that form the front and back guide surfaces and that are perpendicular to the bottom surface and that face each other are formed with guide grooves that form the left and right guide surfaces, and the guide grooves and the surface of the base portion are formed. A plate fixed to the surface of the base portion so as to face each other;
With
One of the two adjacent rotating disks among the first to n-th rotating disks rotates in the first rotating direction, the other rotates in the second rotating direction opposite to the first rotating direction, and the one The first and second coin pushers of the rotary disc and the first and second coin pushers of the other rotary disc so as to rotate while maintaining a predetermined rotational phase difference; and Each rotation position of the other turntable is set,
By supporting the first to nth turntables on a rotation shaft provided on the base portion so that the respective surfaces of the first to nth turntables are substantially flush with the surface of the base portion, Each of the first to n-th turntables constitutes the back guide surface together with the surface of the base portion,
While the front and back surfaces of the coin in the coin guide passage are directly guided by the front and back guide surfaces, the first and second pushers that rotate are brought into contact with the peripheral surface of the coin in the coin guide passage. By pushing up, the coin is configured to be conveyed from the entrance to the exit,
A coin transport device in which the first and second rotation axes are arranged so as to intersect at a predetermined angle when viewed from one of the left and right guide surfaces. The second to n-th rotation axes are alternately arranged at predetermined intervals on the first and second axis arrangement lines located in parallel to each other along the coin guide path in the coin guide path. The coin transport device according to claim 1, wherein the coin transport device is arranged in a zigzag shape along an extending direction of the coin guide passage. The back guide surface has a first guide surface portion orthogonal to the first rotation axis and a second guide surface portion orthogonal to the second rotation axis, and the first and second guide surface portions are The coin transport device according to claim 1, wherein the coin transport device is connected via the first curved surface portion. The coin conveying apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the front guide surface has a second curved surface portion facing the first curved surface portion. 2. The coin transport device according to claim 1, wherein each of the first gear and the second gear includes a bevel gear portion having a conical angle corresponding to the predetermined angle. The coin conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first gear includes a spur gear portion, and a driving force is transmitted from the driving means to the first gear via the spur gear portion. A rotation monitoring sensor for detecting whether or not the first to n-th turntables are rotating is provided, and when the rotation monitoring sensor detects a stop of the rotation of the first to n-th turntables, the rotation stoppage is indicated. The coin transfer device according to claim 1 which outputs a signal. A coin delivery device that separates and feeds coins in a stacked state one by one, and a coin transport device that receives the coins sent from the coin delivery device at an entrance and transports them to the exit, A coin payout device that pays out to
The coin delivery device is configured to hold a coin in a piled state, and is inclined upward at a predetermined angle, and a circular support shelf is formed at the center of the upper surface thereof, is equally spaced, and A plurality of coin locking bodies radially extending from the support shelf side in a circumferential direction, and the coins held in the holding bowl are brought into surface contact with the holding surfaces between the plurality of coin locking bodies and received one by one; And a rotating disk that is pushed by the plurality of coin locking bodies while being supported by the support shelf and the holding surface, and that extends in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk from the vicinity of the support shelf and is pushed by the rotating disk. Coin receiving means for receiving the coins and feeding them one by one in the circumferential direction of the rotating disk, and driving means for rotating the rotating disk,
A coin payout device comprising the coin transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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