JP5863033B2 - Security release device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement in a security release device used when releasing magnetic security of a rental medium that has been subjected to appropriate rental processing.

  When a barcode attached to a rental medium such as a CD / DVD or a book is read by a built-in barcode scanner, and the barcode is stored in the host device as a barcode of the rental medium that has been properly rented A security release device that releases the magnetic security of a rental medium for a limited time is already known.

  FIG. 9 shows an outline of the configuration of the security release device used when releasing the magnetic security of the rental medium that has been subjected to appropriate rental processing.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the main part of the security release device 100 is the thickest rental among the lower inclined surface 101 having an inclination angle that allows the rental medium 112 to slide due to its own weight and the rental medium 112 to be lent. A medium conveyance path 103 formed by an upper inclined surface 102 disposed parallel to the lower inclined surface 101 with an interval comparable to the thickness of the medium between the lower inclined surface 101 and a medium conveying path A barcode scanner 105 that reads a barcode 114 (see FIG. 10) attached to a rental medium 112 that is inserted from a medium insertion port 104 provided on the upstream side of 103, and a barcode 114 by at least the barcode scanner 105 Until the reading is completed, the medium conveying path 103 is completely protruded from the lower inclined surface 101 into the medium conveying path 103. Normally closed to maintain the chained state and abut on the insertion side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 to keep the rental medium 112 in a recoverable position (a position where the opposite end side of the rental medium 112 protrudes from the medium insertion port 104). A medium-type medium stopper 106, a medium detection sensor 107 that is installed slightly upstream from the medium stopper 106 and detects that the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is in contact with the medium stopper 106, and a barcode scanner 105. Determining means (not shown) for determining the suitability of the read bar code 114, and the thickness of the medium transport path 103 when the bar code 114 is determined to be appropriate by the determining means. Stopper opening means (not shown) for retreating outward in the direction, and slightly downstream from the medium stopper 106 A passage detection sensor 108 that detects that the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 has moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 106, and a position on the lower inclined surface 101 at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor 108. The security tag 109 is configured to temporarily disable the RFID tag 115 (see FIG. 10) of the rental medium 112 that slides to release the magnetic security.

  Reference numeral 110 denotes a confirmation sensor for detecting the complete passage of the rental medium 112, and reference numeral 111 denotes a medium outlet for taking out the rental medium 112 whose magnetic security is released.

The medium detection sensor 107, the passage detection sensor 108, and the confirmation sensor 110 are generally composed of a photocoupler or the like, and the stopper opening means is an electromagnetic solenoid or medium stopper that linearly moves the medium stopper 106 in the normal direction of the lower inclined surface 101. It is composed of a rotary solenoid that swings the medium stopper 106 around the base of 106.
The determining means for determining the suitability of the bar code 114 is constituted by a CPU built in the security canceling apparatus 100. The CPU includes the bar code scanner 105, the medium detecting sensor 107, the passage detecting sensor 108, the security canceling means 109, and the confirmation. It also functions as a control means for the sensor 110 and the stopper opening means.

  The rental medium 112 to be rented has a form as shown in FIG. 10, for example. A barcode 114 is attached to one surface in the thickness direction, and an RFID tag 115 for preventing unauthorized removal. Is attached. Since a security system using an RFID tag is already known, it will not be described in particular.

  When the rental medium 112 to be lent is a book or the like, the barcode 114 or the RFID tag 115 is attached to the rental medium 112 itself, and when the rental medium 112 to be lent is a CD / DVD or the like, that is, In the case where inconvenience occurs when the barcode 114 or the RFID tag 115 is attached to the rental object itself, the barcode 114 or the RFID tag 115 is attached to the case 112 such as a CD / DVD. / A case such as a DVD is referred to as a rental medium 112.

  When the rental medium 112 such as a book is handled as a rental object, or when a CD / DVD and a book are handled as the rental medium 112 at the same time, it is necessary to allow insertion of the rental medium 112 having the maximum thickness. Therefore, the sizes of the medium insertion port 104 and the medium transport path 103 are designed according to the rental medium 112 having the maximum thickness. As a result, there is a problem that the rental medium 112 is repeatedly inserted into the security release device 100. May occur.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 9, in the case where the thickness of the two rental media 112 and 112 overlapped is equal to or less than the thickness of the rental media having the maximum thickness, the two rental media 112 and 112 are used. Can be inserted into the security release device 100 at the same time.

In such a case, the insertion-side end surfaces 113 of the two rental media 112 and 112 abut against the media stopper 106, and the rental media 112 and 112 are temporarily held at the recoverable position. Only the bar code 114 of the rental medium 112 located on the upper side is read by.
When the determination unit determines that the bar code 114 of the rental medium 112 located on the upper side is appropriate, the stopper opening unit operates unconditionally, and the medium stopper 106 is retracted from the medium conveyance path 103. Therefore, both of these two rental media 112 and 112 slide on the lower inclined surface 101 and flow downstream along the medium transport path 103, and the RFID tags 115 and 112 of the two rental media 112 and 112, respectively. 115 is invalidated by the security canceling means 109, and the inconvenience of illegal take-out of the rental medium 112 on the side where the barcode 114 is not scanned is allowed.

It is clear that the essential cause of illegal take-out is the redundant insertion of the rental medium 112 into the medium insertion port 104 and the medium transport path 103. As a means for solving this type of problem, the rental service handled The size of the medium insertion port 104 is regulated according to the rental medium 112 after the thickness of the medium 112 is uniquely defined, and only the single insertion of the rental medium 112 having the defined thickness is allowed. In this case, the size of the rental medium 112 to be handled is limited. Therefore, the rental medium 112 such as a book having various thicknesses can be handled as a rental target, or a CD / DVD and a book can be used as the rental medium 112 at the same time. It can no longer be handled.
Of course, it is possible to divide the floor for each type of rental medium 112 and install a dedicated security release device 100 adapted to the thickness of the rental medium 112, but the capital investment and running cost will increase significantly.

  Alternatively, the standard of the case 112 for storing rental media such as books and CD / DVDs is standardized, and all rental media are lent out in the case 112 having the same specification, and the barcode 112 and the RFID tag 115 are provided in the case 112. It may be possible to deal with various rental media with the security release device 100 of a single specification by attaching a device, but since it is necessary to newly manufacture a dedicated case 112, it is still necessary to make capital investment and running costs. Is not preferable.

As a general means for preventing duplicate conveyance of an article to be lent or sold, one using a detection means for measuring the height or thickness of an object is disclosed as Patent Document 1, for example. This is inconvenient in that a dedicated measuring instrument is required, and there is also the inconvenience that the thickness of the object must be registered in advance corresponding to the barcode 114.
Furthermore, as a general means for canceling the overlapping conveyance of articles, for example, there is a patent that breaks up stacked objects by operating a brush in an active conveyance process using a conveyor belt or the like. For example, Patent Document 3 discloses that a stack of objects is released by applying a frictional load to one of the overlapped articles. Special means are required to break down the conveyor belts and rollers that are actively transported and the object, or to cancel the stacking of the objects, and a certain length of conveying path is required. Therefore, it is not suitable for a small security release device.

JP-A-9-212564 (paragraphs 0042, 0043) JP-A-10-147426 (paragraph 0056) JP-A 62-36251 (page 3, upper left column, line 14 to upper right column, second line)

  The purpose of the present invention is to require a special measuring instrument, positive transport means, and installation of special means for breaking the object or canceling the stacking of the objects and making the transport path redundant, It is an object of the present invention to provide a security release device that can prevent unauthorized rental media from being taken out due to redundant insertion of rental media.

The security releasing device according to the present invention has a lower inclined surface having an inclination angle that allows the rental medium to slide due to its own weight and an interval equivalent to the thickness of the thickest rental medium among rental media to be lent out. A medium conveying path formed by an upper inclined surface placed in parallel with the lower inclined surface and a medium insertion port provided on the upstream side of the medium conveying path. A barcode scanner that reads a barcode attached to a rental medium and a state in which the barcode protrudes from the lower inclined surface into the medium conveyance path at least until the barcode is read by the barcode scanner. A normally closed type medium stopper that contacts the rental medium insertion side end surface and holds the rental medium in a recoverable position; and an upstream side of the medium stopper. A medium detection sensor for detecting that the end surface on the insertion side of the rental medium is in contact with the medium stopper, a determination means for determining the suitability of the barcode read by the barcode scanner, and a downstream side of the medium stopper. A passage detection sensor for detecting that the insertion-side end surface of the rental medium installed has moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper, and slides on the lower inclined surface at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor. A security release device comprising a security release means for releasing the magnetic security of the rental medium, and in order to achieve the object,
The protruding height of the medium stopper with respect to the lower inclined surface is formed to be equal to or less than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium among rental media to be lent,
A normally closed preliminary stopper provided at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor and upstream of the security release means to open and close the medium conveyance path;
Under the situation where the determination means determines that the barcode is appropriate, the medium detection sensor detects that the rental medium insertion side end surface is in contact with the medium stopper, and the passage detection. Only when the sensor detects that the end face on the insertion side of the rental medium has not moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper, the medium stopper and the preliminary stopper are moved outward in the thickness direction of the medium conveyance path. And a stopper opening means for retracting.

In the security release device of the present invention, the protruding height of the medium stopper protruding into the medium conveyance path from the lower inclined surface of the medium conveyance path is formed to be equal to or less than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium among the rental media to be lent. A normally closed spare stopper that opens and closes the media transport path is provided at a location downstream of the passage detection sensor located downstream of the media stopper and upstream of the security release means. It was confirmed that the rental medium insertion side end face abuts against the medium stopper and the rental medium insertion side end face does not move downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper in a situation determined to be Only in some cases, the medium stopper and the auxiliary stopper are retracted to the outside in the thickness direction of the medium conveyance path. When only one rental medium is properly inserted along the lower inclined surface, the rental medium is prevented from moving further downstream due to the insertion-side end surface of the rental medium contacting the medium stopper. In the same way as in the conventional apparatus, the execution and non-execution of the medium stopper release operation according to the barcode determination result by the barcode scanner and the determination unit, that is, the execution and non-execution of the security release operation by the security release unit are appropriately performed. When two or more rental media are overlapped regardless of the thickness of the rental media, the rental media located in the lowermost layer, that is, the rental that is in direct contact with the lower inclined surface Only the end surface on the medium insertion side comes into contact with the medium stopper to prevent further downstream movement, while the rental medium located at the bottom layer is excluded. Since all other rental media slide with respect to the rental media located at the lowest layer and move downstream beyond the media stopper, the insertion-side end surfaces of these rental media are detected by the passage detection sensor, and the bar Regardless of the barcode determination result by the code scanner and the determination means, the retracting operation of the medium stopper and the spare stopper is not executed, and the bottom end of the rental medium is in contact with the medium stopper and positioned at the bottom layer Since all rental media are kept in a recoverable position by the contact between the insertion side end surface of the other rental media except the rental media to be used and the preliminary stopper, the security release operation by the security release means is also not executed. It is possible to prevent unauthorized removal of rental media due to redundant insertion of rental media. Yes.
In addition, there is no need to install a special measuring instrument, aggressive transporting means and special means for breaking the object or releasing the stacking of the objects and making the transport path redundant. Since the release device can deal with rental media of various thicknesses, problems such as capital investment and increased running costs do not occur.

It is the conceptual diagram which showed the outline of the structure of the security release apparatus of one Embodiment to which this invention is applied. It is the block diagram which simplified and showed the principal part of the control system in the security cancellation | release apparatus of the same embodiment. It is the flowchart shown about the outline | summary of the process of CPU which functions as a control means and a determination means of a security cancellation | release apparatus. It is an action principle figure shown about the situation when the rental medium of the improper posture is inserted in the medium insertion slot of the security release device. It is an action principle figure shown about the situation when a thin rental medium is inserted in the medium insertion slot of a security release device redundantly. It is an operation principle diagram showing a situation when a thin rental medium is inserted in an inappropriate posture into the medium insertion port of the security release device. It is an operation principle diagram showing a situation when a rental medium is inserted in an appropriate posture into the medium insertion port of the security release device and the medium stopper and the preliminary stopper are opened. It is the conceptual diagram shown about one of the modifications regarding the structure of a medium stopper and a preliminary | backup stopper. It is the conceptual diagram which showed the outline of the structure of the conventional type | mold security release apparatus. It is the conceptual diagram which showed the outline of the structure of a rental medium and its casing.

  Next, specific examples of the embodiment for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an outline of the configuration of a security release apparatus 1 according to an embodiment to which the present invention is applied from the side.

As shown in FIG. 1, the security releasing device 1 of this embodiment is the thickest of the lower inclined surface 101 having an inclination angle that allows the rental medium 112 to slide due to its own weight and the rental medium 112 to be lent. A medium conveying path 103 formed by an upper inclined surface 102 disposed in parallel to the lower inclined surface 101 with an interval slightly larger than the thickness of the rental medium 112a between the lower inclined surface 101, and A barcode scanner 105 that reads a barcode 114 (see FIG. 10) attached to a rental medium 112 that is inserted from a medium insertion port 104 provided on the upstream side of the medium conveyance path 103, and at least a barcode by the barcode scanner 105 The state of protruding from the lower inclined surface 101 into the medium conveyance path 103 is maintained until the reading of the code 114 is completed. A normally-closed type medium stopper 2 that contacts the insertion side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 and holds the rental medium 112 at a position where the rental medium 112 can be collected (a position where the opposite end side of the rental medium 112 protrudes from the medium insertion port 104); A medium detection sensor 107 that is installed slightly upstream from the medium stopper 2 (for example, 5 mm upstream) and detects that the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is in contact with the medium stopper 2, and a barcode scanner 105 Determining means (not shown in FIG. 1) for determining the suitability of the read barcode 114, and an insertion-side end face 113 of the rental medium 112 installed slightly downstream (for example, 5 mm downstream) from the medium stopper 2. Has passed through the position of the medium stopper 2 and detects that it has moved downstream. And a security releasing means 109 for releasing the magnetic security temporarily disable RFID tag 115 of the rental medium 112 to slide (see Fig. 10) a lower inclined surface 101 on at the position of the side.
In particular, the protrusion height of the medium stopper 2 with respect to the lower inclined surface 101 is formed to be equal to or less than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium 112b (see FIG. 5) among the rental media 112 to be lent, and A normally closed type preliminary stopper 3 that opens and closes the medium conveyance path 103 at a position slightly downstream of the passage detection sensor 108 and upstream of the security release means 109 is provided, and the barcode 114 is determined by the determination means. The medium detection sensor 107 detects that the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is in contact with the medium stopper 2 and the passage detection sensor 108 detects the rental medium. When it is detected that the insertion end surface 113 of 112 has not moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 2 Is characterized in configuration in that a stopper opening means for retracting the media stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 on the outer side in the thickness direction of the medium conveyance path 103 (not shown in FIG. 1) only.

In addition, the preliminary stopper 3 in this embodiment extends from the front end of the medium stopper 2 to the downstream side along the medium transport path 103 and from the front end of the stopper connection portion 3a toward the upper inclined surface 102. Since the stopper main body portion 3 b is formed integrally with the medium stopper 2, a single actuator connected to the medium stopper 2 is sufficient for the stopper opening means for operating the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3.
Therefore, in this embodiment, one rotary solenoid (not shown in FIG. 1) that swings the medium stopper 2 from the normally closed position in FIG. 1 toward the clockwise direction with the base of the medium stopper 2 as the center. ) Is used as an actuator for the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3, that is, as a stopper releasing means.
Of course, instead of the rotary solenoid that swings the medium stopper 2 around the base portion of the medium stopper 2, a medium stopper that utilizes a direct acting electromagnetic solenoid that moves the medium stopper 2 in the normal direction of the lower inclined surface 101 is used. 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 may be configured to be retracted to the outside of the medium conveyance path 103 in the thickness direction.
However, in any case, the stopper is formed such that the gap formed between the tip of the stopper main body 3b and the upper inclined surface 102 is smaller than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium 112b among the rental media 112 to be lent. It is necessary to determine the height of the main body 3b.

  In this embodiment, the length of the stopper connecting portion 3a extending downstream from the front end of the medium stopper 2 along the medium conveyance path 103, that is, the distance between the stopper main body portion 3b and the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 is separated. Since the distance is about 10 mm, the leading end of the rental medium 112 that has moved to the position of the stopper main body 3 b on the downstream side by about 10 mm beyond the position of the medium stopper 2 passes through the position on the downstream side about 5 mm of the medium stopper 2. It can be accurately detected by the detection sensor 108.

  Reference numeral 110 is a known confirmation sensor that detects the complete passage of the rental medium 112 and is provided about 50 mm downstream of the medium stopper 2.

  Reference numeral 111 denotes a medium outlet for the user to take out the rental medium 112 whose magnetic security has been released.

The medium detection sensor 107, the passage detection sensor 108, and the confirmation sensor 110 can be configured by a transmissive sensor such as a photocoupler, a reflective sensor, mechanical switch means, or the like.
In this embodiment, as an example, a case will be described in which the medium detection sensor 107, the passage detection sensor 108, and the confirmation sensor 110 are configured by transmission type sensors.

As is clear from the comparison between FIG. 1 and FIG. 9, the lower inclined surface 101, the upper inclined surface 102, the medium conveying path 103, the medium insertion port 104, the barcode scanner 105, and the like provided in the security release device 1 of this embodiment. The configuration and layout of the medium detection sensor 107, the passage detection sensor 108, the security release means 109, the confirmation sensor 110, and the medium outlet 111 are the same as those of the conventional security release apparatus 100 as shown in FIG. is there.
The medium stopper 2 of this embodiment and the conventional medium stopper 106 are different in configuration, but instead of the medium stopper 106 of the conventional security release device 100 as shown in FIG. By attaching the molded medium stopper 2 to the conventional security release device 100, the hardware configuration of the security release device 1 required in this embodiment can be realized very simply.
Therefore, the design and manufacture of the security release apparatus 1 are extremely easy, and the cost of capital investment when installing the security release apparatus 1 is reduced.

  The main part of the control system provided in the security release apparatus 1 is simplified and shown in the block diagram of FIG.

The determination means for determining the suitability of the barcode 114 read by the barcode scanner 105 is constituted by the CPU 4 built in the security canceling apparatus 1, and this CPU 4 includes the barcode scanner 105, the medium detection sensor 107, and the passage detection sensor. It also functions as a control means for the actuator 5 which is a stopper opening means for the security release means 109, the confirmation sensor 110, the medium stopper 2 and the spare stopper 3.
That is, the detection signals from the medium detection sensor 107, the passage detection sensor 108, and the confirmation sensor 110 and the information of the barcode 114 read by the barcode scanner 105 are read into the CPU 4 through the input circuit 6 of the CPU 4, and the medium The actuator 5 that functions as stopper opening means for the stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 is driven and controlled by the CPU 4 via the output circuit 7 and the driver 8 of the CPU 4. Further, the security release means 109 for releasing the magnetic security by temporarily invalidating the RFID tag 115 of the rental medium 112 is ON / OFF controlled by the CPU 4 via the output circuit 7 of the CPU 4.

  The CPU 4 has an input / output interface 9 connected to a host device 10 such as a computer of a POS system. The bar code information of the rental medium 112 that has been subjected to the appropriate lending process is sent from the CPU 4 to the input / output interface 9. The higher-level device 10 can be inquired through this.

  The ROM 12 stores a control program for causing the CPU 4 to function as determination means for determining the suitability of the barcode 114 read by the barcode scanner 105 and control means of the security release apparatus 1.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an outline of processing of the CPU 4 functioning as a control unit and a determination unit of the security release device 1, and FIGS. 4 to 7 show rental media 112, 112a, It is an action principle figure shown about a typical example about various insertion situations of 112b.

  Actually, when the rental medium to be lent is a book or the like, the barcode 114 or the RFID tag 115 is attached to the rental medium 112 itself, while when the rental medium to be lent is a CD / DVD or the like Although it is necessary to attach the barcode 114 and the RFID tag 115 to the case 112 such as / DVD, in this embodiment, what is inserted into the medium insertion slot 104 is a book or the like with the barcode 114 or the RFID tag 115 attached. The rental medium 112 and the case 112 containing a CD / DVD or the like are collectively referred to as the rental medium 112 without distinguishing whether the case is a case with a barcode 114 or an RFID tag 115 attached.

  Next, the processing operation of the security release device 1 will be specifically described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 3 and the operation principle diagrams of FIGS.

  First, when a user who wants to release the magnetic security of the rental medium 112 inserts the rental medium 112 into the medium insertion port 104 provided on the upstream side of the medium conveyance path 103, the rental medium 112 is caused by its own weight. The bar code 114 attached to the rental medium 112 passes through the readable range (see the broken line in FIG. 1) of the bar code scanner 105. At this time, the information of the barcode 114 is read by the barcode scanner 105, and the contents are temporarily stored in the RAM 11 via the CPU 4 (step S1).

  When the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 abuts on the medium stopper 2, the medium stopper 2 in a state of protruding from the lower inclined surface 101 into the medium conveyance path 103 supports the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112. The rental medium 112 is held at a recoverable position.

  Next, the CPU 4 functioning as the determination unit of the security release device 1 accesses the host device 10 via the input / output interface 9 (step S2), and the information of the barcode 114 read in the processing of step S1 is an appropriate lending process. It is determined whether it is stored in the host device 10 as the barcode information of the rental medium that has finished (Step S3).

When the determination result of step S3 is false, that is, the information of the barcode 114 read in the process of step S1 is not stored in the host device 100 as the barcode information of the rental medium that has been subjected to the appropriate lending process. In such a case, at least one rental medium 112 inserted at this time (if only one rental medium 112 is inserted, the rental medium 112 itself or a plurality of rental media 112 In the case of overlapping insertion, the rental medium 112) located in the uppermost layer is not properly rented or the rental medium 112 is in an inappropriate posture as illustrated in FIG. This means that the barcode 114 has failed to be read because of the insertion.
Therefore, in this case, the CPU 4 functioning as the control means of the security release device 1 transmits a retry request signal to the host device 10 via the input / output interface 9 (step S11), and the host device 10 constituting the POS system or the like. A guidance message related to re-insertion of the rental medium 112 is displayed on a display or a voice synthesizer.
In this case, since the actuators 5 of the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 do not operate, all the rental media 112 remain in the recoverable position, and the rental media 112 reaches the position where the security release means 109 is disposed. Therefore, the magnetic security release operation by invalidating the RFID tag 115 is not performed on any rental medium 112.

  On the other hand, when the determination result in step S3 is true, and it is clear that the barcode 114 read in the process in step S1 is stored in the host device 100 as the barcode of the rental medium that has completed the appropriate lending process. Includes at least one of the rental media 112 inserted into the medium insertion slot 104, that is, when only one rental media 112 is inserted, the rental media 112 itself, and a plurality of rental media 112 When the rental medium 112 is inserted in duplicate, it means that the rental medium 112 located in the uppermost layer is a rental medium that has been subjected to appropriate lending processing, so the CPU 4 that functions as the control means of the security release device 1 In addition, the medium detection sensor 107 and the passage detection sensor 108 are used to determine the weight of the rental medium 112. It will be determined for the presence or absence of insertion.

Therefore, the CPU 4 that has started the determination process related to the presence or absence of duplicate insertion first sets the value of the counter C functioning as a timer for measuring the elapsed time since the determination process related to the presence or absence of duplicate insertion to 0. Initialization is performed (step S4).
However, the entity of the counter C is a register constructed using a part of the storage area of the RAM 11.

  Next, the CPU 4 functioning as a control unit of the security release apparatus 1 determines whether or not the medium detection sensor 107 detects that the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is in contact with the medium stopper 2 (step). S5) If the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is detected by the medium detection sensor 107, the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 further abuts against the stopper main body 3b that forms the main part of the spare stopper 3. It is determined whether or not the insertion-side end face 113 of the rental medium 112 has moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 2 (step S6).

  If the determination result in step S5 is true and the determination result in step S6 is false, that is, the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is in contact with the medium stopper 2 and the rental medium 112 is inserted. Only when it is confirmed that the end face 113 has not moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 2, the CPU 4 functioning as the control means of the security release device 1 sets the value of the counter C functioning as a timer to 1 It is incremented (step S7), and it is determined whether or not the current value of the counter C has reached a set value N corresponding to a predetermined elapsed time (step S8).

  Here, if the current value of the counter C does not reach the set value N, the CPU 4 functioning as the control means of the security release apparatus 1 proceeds to the determination process in step S5 again, and in the same manner as described above, the process proceeds from step S5 to step S8. Repeat the process.

  In this way, when the determination result of step S5 becomes false while repeatedly executing the processing of step S5 to step S8, that is, the elapsed time from the start of the determination processing related to the presence or absence of duplicate insertion is determined in advance. If it is confirmed that the insertion side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is separated from the medium stopper 2 and the medium detection sensor 107 no longer detects the rental medium 112 before reaching the set elapsed time, the security The CPU 4 functioning as the control means of the release device 1 rents the rental medium 112 that has been kept in the recoverable position, that is, if only one rental medium 112 is inserted, the rental medium 112 itself, In addition, when a plurality of rental media 112 are duplicated, all the rental media 112 inserted are used. Contemplated by the process ends and regarded as being recovered, again the bar code 114 returns to the initial standby state waiting to be read by the bar code scanner 105.

  On the other hand, when the determination result of step S6 becomes true while the processing of step S5 to step S8 is repeatedly executed, that is, the elapsed time from the start of the determination process related to the presence or absence of duplicate insertion is determined in advance. If it becomes clear that the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 has moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 2 before reaching the set value of the elapsed time, it functions as the control means of the security release device 1 The CPU 4 assumes that the rental medium 112 has been repeatedly inserted or that a setting error has occurred in which the rental medium 112 is inserted in an inappropriate posture. A retry request signal is transmitted to the host device 10 (step S11), and the display or display of the host device 10 constituting the POS system or the like. And it displays the guidance message related to reinsert rental medium 112 by the voice synthesizer or the like.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5, in the case where two thinnest rental media 112b among rental media to be lent out are overlapped and inserted into the medium transport path 103 from the media insertion port 104, The insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112b positioned contacts the medium stopper 2 to prevent the rental medium 112b positioned at the lowermost layer from moving downstream, but the lower inclined surface 101 is used as a reference. Since the protrusion height of the medium stopper 2 is formed to be equal to or less than the thickness of the rental medium 112b that is the thinnest, the insertion side end surface 113 of the other rental medium 112b that is overlaid on the rental medium 112b that is positioned at the lowermost layer is the medium stopper. As shown in FIG. 5, the rental medium 112b located on the upper side is the rental medium 112b located on the lowermost layer, as shown in FIG. By sliding over the medium stopper 2, it moves further downstream to the position of the stopper main body 3b in the preliminary stopper 3, and as a result, excessive movement of the insertion side end face 113 of the rental medium 112b located on the upper side Is detected by the passage detection sensor 108 as redundant insertion of the rental medium 112b.
In this embodiment, in particular, since the protrusion height of the medium stopper 2 with respect to the lower inclined surface 101 is formed to be about 1 mm lower than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium 112b, the thinnest rental medium 112b. Even when another rental medium 112 is inserted over the other rental medium 112, the other rental medium 112 superimposed on the rental medium 112b located in the lowermost layer is made to the rental medium 112 located in the lowermost layer. The passage detection sensor 108 can surely detect the excessive movement of the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 positioned on the upper side, that is, the redundant insertion of the plurality of rental mediums 112, by reliably sliding. .

Further, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, when the rental medium 112 to be lent out is inserted into the medium conveyance path 103 from the medium insertion port 104 in an inappropriate posture by lifting the insertion side end face 113. Suppose that the determination process in step S3 reveals that only one rental medium 112 has been inserted and that this rental medium 112 has been properly rented. However, since the rental medium 112 is improperly positioned, the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 exceeds the medium stopper 2 and rushes to the position of the stopper main body 3b of the spare stopper 3. To occur.
This does not mean an unauthorized operation such as insertion of the rental medium 112 that has not been properly rented or redundant insertion of a plurality of rental media 112, but even in such a case, the insertion-side end face of the rental medium 112 Since the movement of 113 is detected by the passage detection sensor 108, the CPU 4 functioning as the control means of the security release apparatus 1 detects this phenomenon as a setting error related to the insertion of the rental medium 112 (step S6). ), A retry request signal is transmitted to the host device 10 via the input / output interface 9 (step S11), and the guidance relating to reinsertion of the rental medium 112 by the display of the host device 10 or the speech synthesizer constituting the POS system or the like Display a message.
The possibility that the rental medium 112 is inserted into the medium transport path 103 from the medium insertion port 104 in an inappropriate posture is not high, and the rental medium 112 is re-inserted due to a setting error of the rental medium 112 that has finished proper rental processing. Even if a related instruction is issued, if the rental medium 112 is inserted again in an appropriate posture, the problem related to the setting error is solved, so that there is no particular problem.

  On the other hand, when the determination result of step S8 becomes true during the repeated execution of the processing of step S5 to step S8, that is, the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 abuts the medium stopper 2, and the rental When it is confirmed that the situation where the insertion side end face 113 of the medium 112 has not moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 2 has continued for a predetermined set time after the determination process is started. The CPU 4 functioning as the control means of the security release device 1 regards that the inserted rental medium 112 is only one sheet and that the rental medium 112 is the rental medium 112 that has been subjected to appropriate rental processing. Then, the actuator 5 functioning as a stopper opening means is actuated so that the medium stopper 2 is illustrated around the base of the medium stopper 2. Is swung from the normally closed position indicated by the broken line toward the clockwise direction, and the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 are retreated to the open position outside the thickness direction of the medium conveying path 103 as indicated by the solid line in FIG. (Step S9).

In a situation where it is confirmed that the rental medium 112 has been subjected to an appropriate lending process, the insertion side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 abuts on the medium stopper 2 and the insertion side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is the medium stopper 2. Even if it is detected that the medium has not been moved downstream beyond the position, the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 are not immediately opened, and the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 is set over a predetermined set time. The reason that the medium stopper 2 and the auxiliary stopper 3 are opened after confirming that they have not moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 2 is that when two or more rental media 112 are inserted in duplicate. Another rental medium 112 superimposed on the rental medium 112 located in the lowermost layer is opposed to the rental medium 112 located in the lowermost layer. It takes a certain amount of time (for example, 1 second to 2 seconds) until the insertion side end surface 113 is moved downstream of the medium stopper 2 due to slippage. If the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 are immediately opened just because the insertion-side end face 113 is not detected, appropriate lending is possible when two or more rental media 112 are actually inserted. The other rental media 112 superimposed on the lower surface side of the rental medium 112 that has been processed slides downstream with the rental media 112 that has been subjected to the appropriate lending process past the positions of the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 as they are. This is because there is a risk of doing so.
Therefore, the value of the set value N described above is that the other rental medium 112 overlaid on the rental medium 112 positioned at the lowermost layer slides with respect to the rental medium 112 positioned at the lowermost layer, and its insertion side end surface Considering the time required to move 113 to the downstream side of the medium stopper 2 and the time required for the loop processing in steps S5 to S8, for example, a value obtained by multiplying the time required for the loop processing by N is 1 second to 2 It is necessary to set an appropriate value so as to be about 2 seconds, so that duplicate insertion of two or more rental media 112 can be reliably detected by sliding the rental media 112 positioned above.

  And when the determination result of step S8 becomes true during the repeated execution of the processing of step S5 to step S8, that is, the elapsed time from the start of the determination processing related to the presence or absence of duplicate insertion is determined in advance. The retraction operation of the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 is performed only when the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 are opened without the passage detection sensor 108 detecting the redundant insertion of the rental medium 112 even when the set value of the elapsed time is reached. The rental medium 112 is allowed to slide downstream, and the RFID tag 115 of the rental medium 112 is invalidated in the same manner as before when the RFID tag 115 attached to the rental medium 112 passes over the security release means 109. Thus, the magnetic security of the rental medium 112 is released (step S10). .

As described above, in this embodiment, the height of the protrusion of the medium stopper 2 protruding into the medium conveyance path 103 from the lower inclined surface 101 of the medium conveyance path 103 is the rental medium 112 to be lent. While forming the thickness of the thinnest rental medium 112b or less, the medium conveyance path 103 is opened and closed at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor 108 positioned downstream of the medium stopper 2 and upstream of the security release means 109. Under the circumstances where the normally closed type preliminary stopper 3 is provided and the bar code 114 of the rental medium 112 is determined to be appropriate, the insertion-side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 abuts against the medium stopper 2 and the rental medium 112 Only when it is confirmed that the insertion-side end face 113 has not moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper 2 Since the topper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 are retracted to the outside of the medium conveyance path 103 in the thickness direction, only one rental medium 112 can be appropriately moved along the lower inclined surface 101 regardless of the thickness of the rental medium 112. When inserted, it is prevented that the insertion side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 abuts against the medium stopper 2 and the rental medium 112 is moved further to the downstream side. Execution and non-execution of the opening operation of the medium stopper 2 according to the determination result of the barcode 114 by the determination means comprising the CPU 4, that is, execution and non-execution of the magnetic security release operation by the security release means 109 are appropriately selected and executed. can do.
In addition, when two or more rental media 112 are repeatedly inserted regardless of the thickness of the rental media 112, the rental media 112 positioned at the lowermost layer, that is, the rental media 112 that is in direct contact with the lower inclined surface 101 is inserted. Only the end surface 113 abuts against the medium stopper 2 to prevent further downstream movement, while all the rental media 112 other than the rental media 112 located in the lowermost layer are rented in the lowermost layer. Since slip occurs with respect to the medium 112 and moves downstream beyond the medium stopper 2, the insertion side end surface 113 of the rental medium 112 that has moved downstream is detected by the passage detection sensor 108, and the barcode scanner 105 and Regardless of the determination result of the bar code 114 by the determination means comprising the CPU 4, the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stop 3 is not executed, and the insertion side end surface 113 of the other rental media 112 excluding the rental media 112 located at the bottom of the rental media 112 is in contact with the media stopper 2 and the insertion side end surface 113 of the lowermost rental media 112. Since all the rental media 112 are held at the recoverable position by the contact with the preliminary stopper 3 and the security release operation by the security release means 109 is not executed, the rental due to the redundant insertion of the rental media 112 is also performed. Unauthorized removal of the medium 112 can be prevented in advance.
In particular, in this embodiment, the protrusion height of the medium stopper 2 with respect to the lower inclined surface 101 is formed to be about 1 mm lower than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium 112b. Even when another rental medium 112 is inserted on top of the medium 112b, the other rental medium 112 superimposed on the rental medium 112b positioned at the lowermost layer is the rental medium 112 positioned at the lowermost layer. The passage detection sensor 108 reliably detects excessive movement of the rental medium 112 positioned on the upper side to the downstream side, that is, overlapped insertion of a plurality of rental media 112. Can do.

Moreover, the lower inclined surface 101, the upper inclined surface 102, the medium conveyance path 103, the medium insertion port 104, the bar code scanner 105, the medium detection sensor 107, the passage detection sensor 108, the security release means 109, and the confirmation provided in the security release apparatus 1 The configuration and layout of the sensor 110 and the medium outlet 111 are completely the same as those of the conventional security release device 100, and are integrated with the spare stopper 3 instead of the medium stopper 106 of the conventional security release device 100. Since the hardware configuration required for detecting duplicate insertion of the rental medium 112 can be realized by a simple operation of simply attaching the molded medium stopper 2 to the conventional security release device 100, the security release device 1 Development and design are extremely easy and secure. The cost of capital investment when installing the tee release device 1 is also reduced.
Therefore, the installation of special measuring instruments and active transporting means, special means for breaking the overlapping rental media 112 and releasing the stacking of the rental media 112, and redundancy of the media transport path 103 There is no need to create a special case for standardizing the size of an object to be inserted into the medium insertion port 104, and rental media 112, 112a, 112b of various thicknesses can be obtained by one security release device 1. Therefore, the problem of increasing the running cost does not occur.

  The example of the configuration of the security release device in which the preliminary stopper 3 is formed integrally with the medium stopper 2 and the medium stopper 2 and the preliminary stopper 3 are opened / closed by one actuator 5 has been described. The auxiliary stopper 3 and the medium stopper 2 formed independently can be opened and closed by individual actuators.

For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the medium stopper 2 and the auxiliary stopper 3 are provided independently, and the medium stopper 2 protrudes into the medium conveyance path 103 from the lower inclined surface 101, while the auxiliary stopper 3 is positioned on the upper side. The inclined surface 102 is projected into the medium conveyance path 103, and each of the medium stopper 2 and the auxiliary stopper 3 is utilized for each of the lower inclined surface 101 (using two direct-acting electromagnetic solenoids (conveniently)). It is possible to adopt a configuration in which the straight line moves in the normal direction of the upper inclined surface 102).
In this case as well, it is an essential requirement that the protruding height of the medium stopper 2 be equal to or less than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium 112b among the rental media 112 to be lent, but with the medium stopper 2 facing the protruding direction. Since the sliding of the rental medium 112 to the downstream side of the preliminary stopper 3 can be prevented by using the preliminary stopper 3 together, the protruding height of the preliminary stopper 3 from the upper inclined surface 102 into the medium conveyance path 103 is It is sufficient if the height is high enough to prevent the thinnest rental medium 112b entering over the medium stopper 2 from entering the downstream side.

  Although not particularly shown, the medium stopper 2 and the auxiliary stopper 3 are provided independently, and both the medium stopper 2 and the auxiliary stopper 3 are projected from the lower inclined surface 101 into the medium conveyance path 103. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which each of the preliminary stoppers 3 is directly moved in the normal direction of the lower inclined surface 101 by using dedicated direct acting electromagnetic solenoids (two in total).

  A part or all of the embodiment disclosed above can be appropriately expressed by the description shown in the following supplementary notes, but the form for carrying out the invention and the technical idea of the invention are not limited to these. Absent.

[Appendix 1]
An interval comparable to the thickness of the thickest rental medium (112a) among the lower inclined surface (101) having an inclination angle that allows the rental medium (112) to slide due to its own weight and the rental medium (112) to be lent out. A medium conveying path (103) formed by an upper inclined surface (102) placed in parallel with the lower inclined surface (101) and placed between the lower inclined surface (101) and the A barcode scanner (105) for reading a barcode (114) attached to a rental medium (112) inserted from a medium insertion port (104) provided on the upstream side of the medium conveyance path (103); Until the barcode (114) is read by the barcode scanner (105), the barcode scanner (105) protrudes from the lower inclined surface (101) into the medium conveyance path (103). A normally closed type medium stopper (2) that maintains the state and abuts on the insertion side end face (113) of the rental medium (112) and holds the rental medium (112) in a recoverable position; and the medium stopper (2) And a bar code scanner (105) for detecting that the insertion side end surface (113) of the rental medium (112) is in contact with the medium stopper (2). Determining means (CPU 4) for determining the suitability of the bar code (114), and the insertion side end face (113) of the rental medium (112) installed downstream of the medium stopper (2) is the medium stopper (2). A passage detection sensor (108) for detecting the movement to the downstream side beyond the position, and the lower inclined surface (101) at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor (108). In security release device and a security releasing means (109) for releasing the magnetic security rental medium to slide (112) to (1),
The protruding height of the medium stopper (2) with respect to the lower inclined surface (101) is formed to be equal to or less than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium (112b) among rental media (112) to be lent.
A normally closed preliminary stopper (3) provided at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor (108) and upstream of the security release means (109) to open and close the medium conveyance path (103); ,
Under the situation where the barcode (114) is determined to be appropriate by the determination means (CPU 4), the medium detection sensor (107) causes the insertion-side end surface (113) of the rental medium (112) to move to the medium stopper. (2) is detected and the passage detection sensor (108) causes the insertion-side end surface (113) of the rental medium (112) to go downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper (2). Stopper opening means (actuator 5) for retracting the medium stopper (2) and the preliminary stopper (3) to the outside in the thickness direction of the medium transport path (103) only when it is detected that the medium has not moved. A security release device (1) characterized by comprising:

[Appendix 2]
The preliminary stopper (3) includes a stopper connecting portion (3a) extending downstream from the tip of the medium stopper (2) along the medium conveying path (103) and the tip of the stopper connecting portion (3a). Is formed integrally with the medium stopper (2) by a stopper main body (3b) extending toward the upper inclined surface (102), and the stopper opening means (actuator 5) is connected to the medium stopper (2). The security release device (1) according to appendix 1, characterized in that the security release device (1) is constituted by a single connected actuator (5).
When such a configuration is applied, in particular, it is possible to replace the medium stopper 106 integrally formed with the preliminary stopper 3 in place of the medium stopper 106 of the conventional security release device 100 by simply replacing the medium stopper 2 of the rental medium 112. Since it is possible to realize the hardware configuration required for detecting duplicate insertion, it is remarkable for the development and design of the security release device 1 and the reduction of the capital investment cost when the security release device 1 is installed. The effect is demonstrated.

[Appendix 3]
The preliminary stopper (3) is provided independently of the medium stopper (2), and the stopper opening means includes an actuator connected to the medium stopper (2) and an actuator connected to the preliminary stopper (3). The security release device according to supplementary note 1, characterized in that:

[Appendix 4]
The security release device according to appendix 3, wherein the preliminary stopper (3) is configured to protrude from the upper inclined surface (102) into the medium conveyance path (103).

[Appendix 5]
The security release device according to appendix 1 or appendix 3, wherein the preliminary stopper (3) is configured to project into the medium transport path (103) from the lower inclined surface (101). 1).

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for detecting duplicate insertion of rental media in a security cancellation device that cancels the magnetic security of the rental media.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Security cancellation | release apparatus 2 Medium stopper 3 Preliminary stopper 3a Stopper connection part 3b Stopper main-body part 4 CPU (determination means)
5 Actuator (Stopper release means)
6 Input circuit 7 Output circuit 8 Driver 9 Input / output interface 10 Host device 11 RAM
12 ROM
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Security cancellation | release apparatus 101 Lower side inclined surface 102 Upper side inclined surface 103 Medium conveyance path 104 Medium insertion port 105 Bar code scanner 106 Medium stopper 107 Medium detection sensor 108 Passing detection sensor 109 Security release means 110 Confirmation sensor 111 Medium extraction port 112 Rental Medium 112a Thickest rental medium 112b among rental media to be lent out Thinnest rental medium 113 among rental media to be lent out 113 Insertion side end face 114 Bar code 115 RFID tag

Claims (5)

The lower inclined surface having an inclination angle that allows the rental medium to slide due to its own weight and an interval equivalent to the thickness of the thickest rental medium among rental media to be lent out are placed between the lower inclined surface and the lower inclined surface. Affixed to a medium conveyance path formed by an upper inclined surface installed in parallel to the lower inclined surface and a rental medium inserted from a medium insertion port provided on the upstream side of the medium conveyance path A bar code scanner that reads a bar code, and maintains a state of protruding from the lower inclined surface into the medium conveyance path until the bar code reading by the bar code scanner is completed. A normally-closed type medium stopper that abuts and holds the rental medium in a recoverable position, and an end of the rental medium inserted on the upstream side of the medium stopper A medium detection sensor that detects that the medium has come into contact with the medium stopper, a determination unit that determines the suitability of the barcode read by the barcode scanner, and a rental medium insertion side that is installed downstream of the medium stopper Releases the magnetic security of the passage detection sensor that detects that the end face has moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper, and the rental medium that slides on the lower inclined surface at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor. A security release device comprising security release means for
The protruding height of the medium stopper with respect to the lower inclined surface is formed to be equal to or less than the thickness of the thinnest rental medium among rental media to be lent,
A normally closed preliminary stopper provided at a position downstream of the passage detection sensor and upstream of the security release means to open and close the medium conveyance path;
Under the situation where the determination means determines that the barcode is appropriate, the medium detection sensor detects that the rental medium insertion side end surface is in contact with the medium stopper, and the passage detection. Only when the sensor detects that the end face on the insertion side of the rental medium has not moved downstream beyond the position of the medium stopper, the medium stopper and the preliminary stopper are moved outward in the thickness direction of the medium conveyance path. A security release device comprising a stopper opening means for retracting.   The preliminary stopper includes a stopper connecting portion extending downstream from the tip of the medium stopper along the medium conveyance path and a stopper main body extending from the tip of the stopper connecting portion toward the upper inclined surface. The security release device according to claim 1, wherein the security stopper is formed integrally with the medium stopper, and the stopper opening means is constituted by one actuator connected to the medium stopper.   The preliminary stopper is provided independently of the medium stopper, and the stopper opening means is constituted by an actuator connected to the medium stopper and an actuator connected to the preliminary stopper. Item 2. The security release device according to item 1.   The security release device according to claim 3, wherein the preliminary stopper is configured to protrude into the medium conveyance path from the upper inclined surface.   The security release device according to claim 1, wherein the preliminary stopper is configured to protrude into the medium conveyance path from the lower inclined surface.

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