JP7205871B2 - coin dispenser - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a coin dispenser for dispensing coins.

Conventionally, coin dispensing devices that only dispense coins during normal operation, such as a coin change machine installed next to a cash register, consisted of a plurality of coin storage hoppers provided for each denomination of coins, and output from these coin storage hoppers. and a coin transport belt for transporting the collected coins to the coin outlet (Patent Document 1).

On the other hand, unlike a coin dispenser that only dispenses coins during normal operation, a coin dispenser installed in a vending machine that accepts and dispenses coins at the same time stacks coins by denomination. a coin storage cassette provided with a plurality of coin tubes to be stored in a plurality of coin tubes and a payout slide provided with a plurality of coin storage holes corresponding to the plurality of coin tubes; and coins are paid out by pulling out the payout slide from the coin storage cassette. A coin dispensing mechanism is also used (Patent Document 2, Patent Document 3).

JP-A-9-180020 Japanese Patent No. 5078191 Japanese Patent No. 5135635

A coin dispensing device having a conventional coin storage hopper has a problem that a wide horizontal space is required due to the basic structure of the coin storage hopper. Moreover, the coin dispensing device having the coin storage hopper has a problem that the coin storage hopper is mainly made of a metal material, so that the weight of the coin dispensing device is large.

On the other hand, coin storage cassettes equipped with a plurality of coin tubes, which are used in part of coin dispensers that receive and dispense coins at the same time, do not require a large space in the horizontal direction, Since it is made of plastic material, it has the advantage of being relatively lightweight.

The inventors of the present invention tried to apply this coin storage cassette to a coin dispensing device that only dispenses coins during normal operation, such as a coin changer, and found that the coins normally fell out of the coin storage hole of the payout slide. It has been found that a problem arises that many phenomena that do not occur occur. As a result of research, the inventors of the present invention found that such a phenomenon is caused by the sticking of coins to other members due to dew condensation, water wetting, freezing, dust, sticky dirt, coin deformation, etc. and the phenomenon that the coins do not fall normally from the coin receiving hole of the payout slide due to the sticking of the coins to other members. We have found that this is a phenomenon that tends to occur in coin dispensers that need to handle lightweight coins.

An object of the present invention is to solve the new problem found by the inventors of the present invention. Specifically, it is an object of the present invention to provide a coin dispensing device capable of saving space and reducing weight and suppressing abnormalities in coin dispensing.

In order to solve the above problems, the coin dispensing device of the present invention is provided with a plurality of coin tubes for storing coins stacked by denomination, and a plurality of coin receiving holes corresponding to the plurality of coin tubes. a coin dispensing mechanism for dispensing coins by pulling out the payout slide; and checking whether or not the coins stored in the coin storage holes have dropped after the payout slide is pulled out, and confirms whether the coins have dropped. If the payout slide is pushed back by a predetermined distance, the payout slide is stopped at that position for a predetermined time, the payout slide is pulled out again, and the payout slide is stopped at that position for a predetermined time. and a control unit that repeats processing, wherein the predetermined distance for pushing back the payout slide is such that, in all of the coin tubes, the coins stored in the coin tubes are housed again in the coin housing holes of the payout slides. It is characterized in that it is set so that it will not be

Further, in the coin dispensing device of the present invention, the predetermined distance for pushing back the payout slide is within a range in which coins received in the coin receiving hole can drop from the coin receiving hole of the payout slide. is set to In the coin dispensing device of the present invention, in the coin drop promotion operation, the payout slide is pushed back by the predetermined distance and then stopped for the predetermined time, and the payout slide is pulled out again and then stopped for the predetermined time. is 300 ms or more and 1 s or less. Further, in the coin dispensing device of the present invention, the predetermined number of times of repeating the coin drop promotion operation in the process performed by the control unit is 1 time or more and 10 times or less.

Further, the coin dispensing device of the present invention is arranged above the area where the coin receiving hole is located when the payout slide is pulled out, and detects the presence of coins received in the coin receiving hole. A sensor is provided, and confirmation of whether or not a coin stored in the coin storage hole has fallen in the processing performed by the control unit is performed based on whether or not the dispensed coin detection sensor detects a coin. do.

Further, in the coin dispensing device of the present invention, a region of the inner wall of the coin receiving hole of the payout slide with which the rear end portion of the coin comes into contact when the payout slide is pulled out from the coin tube extends in the direction of pulling out the payout slide. It is characterized by being in the shape of a vertical plane.

According to the coin dispensing device of the present invention, space saving and weight reduction can be achieved, and abnormal coin dispensing can be suppressed.

It is a perspective view of the coin dispensing device of this embodiment. 1 is a schematic front view of a coin dispenser of this embodiment; FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the state which removed the coin storage cassette of the coin dispensing apparatus of this embodiment. It is a perspective view showing roughly a coin dispensing mechanism of a coin dispensing device of this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view schematically showing the periphery of the coin dispensing mechanism of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment, showing a standby state; FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the periphery of the coin dispensing mechanism of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment, showing a state in which the coin storage cassette is removed from the coin dispensing device main body. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing the periphery of the coin dispensing mechanism of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment, showing a state during coin dispensing operation (related to coins to be dispensed). FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing the periphery of the coin dispensing mechanism of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment, showing a state during coin dispensing operation (related to coins to be dispensed). FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing the periphery of the coin dispensing mechanism of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment, showing a state during coin dispensing operation (related to coins to be dispensed). FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing the periphery of the coin dispensing mechanism of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment, showing a state during coin dispensing operation (related to coins to be dispensed). FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing the periphery of the coin dispensing mechanism of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment, showing a state during coin dispensing operation (for coins that are not dispensed). It is a top view which shows the structure of the carrier sensor of the coin dispensing apparatus of this embodiment. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a payout slide of the coin dispensing device of this embodiment; FIG. 4 is an enlarged top view showing the principal part of the coin receiving hole of the payout slide of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment; It is a block diagram showing roughly the control system of the coin dispensing device of this embodiment. 4 is a time chart during the dispensing operation of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment; 4 is a time chart during the dispensing operation of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment; 5 is a time chart of the coin dispensing operation of the coin dispensing device according to the present embodiment during the dispensing operation accompanied by the coin drop promotion process; FIG. 5 is a schematic top view of the payout cam showing the relationship between the rotation angle of the payout cam of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment and the position of a coin received in a coin receiving hole of the payout slide; It is a flow chart at the time of payout operation of the coin payout device of the present embodiment. 7 is a flow chart of payout motor drive processing of the coin payout device of the present embodiment. It is a flow chart of coin fall confirmation processing of the coin dispensing device of this embodiment. It is a flow chart of the coin drop promotion process of the coin dispensing device of the present embodiment. It is a flow chart of the payout result determination processing of the coin payout device of the present embodiment.

A coin dispenser 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment. This coin dispensing device 1 has a coin dispensing device body 2 and a coin storage cassette 3 .

The coin storage cassette 3 includes a plurality of coin tubes 31 for storing coins stacked by denomination, and a payout slide 32 provided with a plurality of coin storage holes 32a corresponding to the plurality of coin tubes 31. ing. In the illustrated example, the coin storage cassette 3 has six coin tubes 31, each loaded with a 1-yen coin, a 5-yen coin, a 10-yen coin, a 50-yen coin, a 100-yen coin, or a 500-yen coin. and store it.

The coin dispensing device main body 2 has a coin dispensing mechanism 4 for dispensing coins by pulling out a payout slide 32 of the coin storage cassette 3, and a coin dispensing opening (not shown). A coin dispensing opening is provided on the lower surface of the coin dispensing device main body 2 .

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in which the coin storage cassette 3 of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment is removed. As shown in FIG. 3, the coin storage cassette 3 of the coin dispensing device 1 is configured to be attached to and detached from the coin dispensing device main body 2 by sliding vertically.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view schematically showing the coin dispensing mechanism 4 of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment, and FIGS. 5, 6, 7A to 7D and 8 are the coin dispensing device of this embodiment. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing the periphery of a coin dispensing mechanism 4 of 1. FIG. 4 and 5 show the standby state. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the coin storage cassette 3 is removed from the coin dispenser main body 2. As shown in FIG. FIGS. 7A to 7D and 8 show the state during coin dispensing operation, FIGS. 7A to 7D pertaining to coins to be dispensed, and FIG. It is related.

The coin payout mechanism 4 shown in FIGS. 4 to 8 includes a payout motor 41, a payout cam 42, a payout link 43, a payout slide 32, a change slide 44, a change lever 45, a change solenoid 46, and payout coins. It has a detection sensor 47 and a carrier sensor 48 .

The payout motor 41 is driving means for rotating the payout cam 42 via a transmission mechanism such as a gear. The payout cam 42 has a pin-shaped engagement protrusion 42a on its lower surface that engages with the engagement groove 43a of the payout link 43, and is driven in the forward direction (arrow A direction) by the driving force of the payout motor 41 for each payout operation. turn to. The payout link 43 has an engagement groove 43a that engages with the engagement projection 42a of the payout cam 42 and a pin-like engagement projection 43b that detachably engages with the engagement hole 32b of the payout slide 32. When the output 42 rotates once, it reciprocates in the direction of arrow B from the initial position in the drawing. The payout slide 32 has an engagement hole 32b detachably engaged with the engagement projection 43b of the payout link 43, and reciprocates in the direction of arrow B in conjunction with the reciprocating motion of the payout link 43. As shown in FIG.

Here, the reason why the engagement between the engagement hole 32b of the payout slide 32 and the engagement projection 43b of the payout link 43 is detachable is that the payout slide 32 is attached to the coin dispenser body 2 as shown in FIG. This is because it is provided in the coin storage cassette 3 which can be attached to and detached from. When attaching the coin storage cassette 3 to the coin dispensing device main body 2, the engagement hole 32b of the payout slide 32 of the coin storage cassette 3 and the engagement projection 43b of the payout link 43 of the coin dispensing device main body 2 are engaged. Conversely, when the coin storage cassette 3 is removed from the coin dispenser main body 2, the engagement between the engagement hole 32b of the payout slide 32 and the engagement projection 43b of the payout link 43 is released.

Also, the payout slide 32 has a plurality of coin storage holes 32a corresponding to the plurality of coin tubes 31 of the coin storage cassette 3 and accommodating only one coin stored in the lowermost surface of each of the plurality of coin tubes 31. formed. A bottom plate 33 of the coin storage cassette 3 is arranged below the coin storage hole 32a and supports the coins stored in the coin storage hole 32a in the standby state shown in FIGS. .

The payout link 43 has a change slide 44 whose tip extends downward from each coin accommodation hole 32a of the payout slide 32 and for switching between payout and non-payout of the coins accommodated in the respective coin accommodation holes 32a one by one. , corresponding to the respective coin receiving holes 32a. The change slide 44 moves in conjunction with the payout link 43 , but when the movement of the change slide 44 is regulated by a change lever 45 (to be described later), the change slide 44 does not move in conjunction with the payout link 43 .

At the rear of each change slide 44, a change lever 45 that moves up and down by driving means is arranged. The change lever 45 is attached to the tip of a plunger of a change solenoid 46 , and the change solenoid 46 constitutes driving means for the change lever 45 . The plunger of the change solenoid 46 is biased in the projecting direction by a return spring. When the change solenoid 46 is energized, it is attracted in the direction opposite to the projecting direction. It will return to its original position due to the biasing of the . In this specification, the state in which the change solenoid 46 is energized is defined as the change solenoid 46 being ON, and the state in which the change solenoid 46 is not energized is defined as the change solenoid 46 being OFF.

Therefore, when the change solenoid 46 is OFF, the change lever 45 attached to the tip of the plunger of the change solenoid 46 continues to be positioned downward by the biasing force of the return spring, and engages with the rear end of the change slide 44. When the change solenoid 46 is ON, it moves upward, disengages the rear end of the change slide 44, and does not restrict the movement of the change slide 44. It will be.

When the change slide 44 is disengaged from the corresponding change lever 45, as shown in FIGS. 7A to 7D, the change slide 44 reciprocates in conjunction with the reciprocation of the payout link 43 and the payout slide 32, At the time of dispensing operation, the lower portion of the corresponding coin receiving hole 32a is released. On the other hand, when the change slide 44 is engaged with the corresponding change lever 45, as shown in FIG. At the time of dispensing operation, the lower portion of the corresponding coin receiving hole 32a is closed.

The payout coin detection sensor 47 is a sensor that is arranged above the area where the coin accommodation hole 32a is located when the payout slide 32 is pulled out, and detects the presence of coins accommodated in the coin accommodation hole 32a. In the illustrated example, the payout coin detection sensor 47 is composed of a proximity coil sensor. The payout coin detection sensor 47 detects coins present within a certain distance from the payout coin detection sensor 47 . In this specification, the state in which the dispensed coin detection sensor 47 is detecting a coin is defined as being ON, and the state in which the dispensed coin detection sensor 47 is not detecting a coin is defined as being in the OFF state. Suppose there is

During the coin payout operation, as shown in FIG. 7B, when the coin accommodated in the coin accommodation hole 32a of the payout slide 32 is positioned below the payout coin detection sensor 47, that is, the payout slide 32 If the coins are normally accommodated in the coin accommodation hole 32a, the payout coin detection sensor 47 is turned ON. Then, as shown in FIG. 7D, when the coin dropped from the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32 is separated from the payout coin detection sensor 47 by more than a certain distance, that is, when the coin is normally paid out, the payout coin The detection sensor 47 is turned off from ON.

In the coin dispensing device 1 of the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 7B and 7C, the coin received in the coin receiving hole 32a slides while its tip is supported by the tip of the change slide 44, and is dispensed. It is designed to drop from the rear end part away from the coin detection sensor 47 . As a result, the dispensed coin detection sensor 47 and the coin maintain a constant distance, so that the dispensed coin detection sensor 47 can stably detect the coin.

The mechanism consisting of the change slide 44, the change lever 45, the change solenoid 46, and the payout coin detection sensor 47 is provided in one-to-one correspondence with each of the coin tubes 31 and the coin receiving holes 32a, and operates individually. .

A carrier sensor 48 is a sensor that detects the rotation angle of the payout cam 42 . In the illustrated example, the carrier sensor 48 is configured as a two-position detection type sensor using a photointerrupter, and detects whether or not the payout cam 42 has rotated 180 degrees (half a turn) or more in the forward direction (arrow A direction). or is detected.

FIG. 9 is a top view showing the structure of the carrier sensor 48 of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 9, the photointerrupters of the carrier sensor 48 are arranged so as to sandwich a semicircular rib portion 42b that rotates integrally with the payout cam 42. As shown in FIG.

In the stand-by state, as shown in the first stage of FIG. 9, the semicircular arc-shaped rib portion 42b does not exist between the photointerrupters, and the photointerrupters are in the transmissive state. Even if the payout cam 42 rotates in the positive direction (the direction of arrow A), the photointerrupter remains in the translucent state until it rotates halfway, as shown in the second stage of FIG. When the payout cam 42 makes a half rotation in the positive direction (direction of arrow A), as shown in the third stage of FIG. state. After that, even if the payout cam 42 rotates in the forward direction (direction of arrow A), the photointerrupter remains in the light blocking state until it returns to the standby state as shown in the fourth row of FIG.

In this specification, it is assumed that the carrier sensor 48 is ON when the photointerrupter is in the light blocking state, and the carrier sensor 48 is OFF when the photointerrupter is in the light transmitting state. In the illustrated example, the carrier sensor 48 is OFF until the payout cam 42 makes a half turn in the forward direction (arrow A direction) from the standby state, and the payout cam 42 makes a half turn in the forward direction (arrow A direction). After that, the carrier sensor 48 is turned on until returning to the standby state. In addition, in this embodiment, by reading the drive current of the payout motor 41, the process of calculating a rough rotation angle is also performed.

Here, as an example, the case where the coin dispensing device 1 dispenses coins only from the coin tube 31 corresponding to one coin receiving hole 32a will be described.

First, as shown in FIG. 7A, only the change solenoid 46 corresponding to the coin receiving hole 32a of the coin to be dispensed is turned on, and the change lever 45 is moved upward. As a result, the engagement between the change lever 45 and the change slide 44 is released, and the change slide 44 corresponding to the coin receiving hole 32a of the coin to be paid out in conjunction with the reciprocating movement of the payout slide 32 can reciprocate. becomes. On the other hand, since the change solenoid 46 corresponding to the coin receiving hole 32a for the undispensed coin is OFF, the engagement between the change lever 45 and the change slide 44 is not released, and the coin receiving hole for the undischarged coin is closed. Movement of the change slide 44 corresponding to 32a is restricted.

Next, as shown in FIG. 7B, the payout motor 41 rotates forward to rotate the payout cam 42 in the direction of the arrow A, and the payout link 43 and the payout slide 32 slide in the direction of the arrow B as well. At this time, when the coins stored in the coin storage hole 32a are positioned below the payout coin detection sensor 47, that is, when the coins are normally stored in the coin storage hole of the payout slide 32, the payout is started. The coin detection sensor 47 is turned ON.

Next, as shown in FIG. 7C, when the payout cam 42 makes a half rotation in the forward direction (direction of arrow A), that is, when the carrier sensor 48 is turned ON, the forward driving of the payout motor 41 stops, and the payout cam 42 , payout link 43 and payout slide 32 also stop. The payout slide 32 is pulled out from the coin tube 31 to the maximum extent, and the rear end of the coin accommodated in the coin accommodation hole 32 a is positioned outside the bottom plate 33 .

At this time, since the change slide 44 corresponding to the coin receiving hole 32a of the coin to be dispensed slides backward in conjunction with the movement of the payout link 43 and the payout slide 32, the lower part of the coin receiving hole 32a is released. The coin received in the coin receiving hole 32a drops from the rear end. Then, as shown in FIG. 7D, when the coin dropped from the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32 is separated from the payout coin detection sensor 47 by more than a certain distance, that is, when the coin is normally paid out, the payout coin The detection sensor 47 is turned off from ON.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, the change lever 45 restricts the movement of the change slide 44 corresponding to the coin receiving hole 32a for the unpaid coins, so that the payout link 43 and the payout slide 32 move. also maintains its standby position. Therefore, when the payout link 43 and the payout slide 32 move, the tip of the change slide 44 appears and disappears below the coin accommodation hole 32a, thereby supporting the coin accommodated in the coin accommodation hole 32a. is not paid out.

In the coin dispensing device 1 of the present embodiment, the payout cam 42 rotates halfway in the positive direction (arrow A direction) from the standby state and stops. A coin drop confirmation process (S34) is performed to confirm whether or not the coin has dropped normally from the top, and to perform a coin drop promotion process (S349) to promote the drop of the coin when the normal drop of the coin cannot be confirmed. . The details of the control of the coin dispensing device 1 including the coin drop confirmation process (S34) will be described later.

After the coin drop confirmation process (S34), the payout cam 42 further rotates in the forward direction (direction of arrow A) by half, that is, until the carrier sensor 48 is turned off, returns to the original position, and stops. , the payout link 43 and the payout slide 32 also slide along the direction of the arrow B, return to their original positions, and stop.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the payout slide 32 of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment, and FIG. 11 is an enlarged top view showing the main part of the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32 of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment. It is a diagram.

In the illustrated example, the area of the inner wall of the coin receiving hole 32a that the rear end of the coin comes into contact with when the payout slide 32 is pulled out from the coin tube 31 has a planar shape perpendicular to the direction in which the payout slide 32 is pulled out. In other words, the coin housing hole 32a has a shape of a portion with which the rear end portion of the coin contacts when the payout slide 32 is pulled out from the coin tube 31, when viewed from above (a plurality of coin housing holes 32a of the payout slide 32 are provided). (viewed from the direction perpendicular to the surface), it forms a straight line perpendicular to the direction in which the payout slide 32 is pulled out. In the example shown in FIG. 11, the coin and the inner wall of the coin receiving hole 32a are in contact with each other only at one point when viewed from above.

In this way, the region of the inner wall of the coin housing hole 32a with which the rear end of the coin comes into contact when the payout slide 32 is pulled out is made flat perpendicular to the direction in which the payout slide 32 is pulled out. As a result, when a coin sticks to the coin receiving hole 32a, it becomes easy to eliminate the sticking. It should be noted that the plane and straight lines in the shape of the coin receiving hole 32a do not have to be plane and straight lines in the strict sense, and include those that have similar effects and can be substantially regarded as plane and straight lines. shall be taken.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram schematically showing the control system of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment.

The coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment includes a control unit 10, a first storage unit 11, a second storage unit 12, a change solenoid 46, a dispensing motor 41, a carrier sensor 48, and a dispensing coin detection sensor 47. , have

The control unit 10 transmits and receives information to and from the external device 9, the first storage unit 11 and the second storage unit 12, receives information from the carrier sensor 48 and the dispensed coin detection sensor 47, changes the solenoid 46 and A drive signal is transmitted to the payout motor 41 .

The first storage unit 11 stores a first coin drop confirmation time T1, a second coin drop confirmation time T2, a coin drop promotion drive time T3, a coin drop promotion stop time T4, and a coin drop promotion operation count N. Remember. The second storage unit 12 stores the values of flag A and flag B, which will be described later. The first storage unit 11 stores preset values, and is preferably configured with a non-volatile memory. The value of the second storage unit 12 changes during the payout operation, and is preferably configured by a RAM.

13 and 14 are time charts during the dispensing operation of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment. This time chart relates to coins to be paid out.

After the payout motor 41 is driven to rotate forward and the carrier sensor 48 is turned ON, that is, after the payout slide 32 is pulled out to the maximum, the payout motor 41 is stopped for the first coin drop confirmation time T1, and thereafter, It is confirmed whether or not the payout coin detection sensor 47 is turned off, that is, whether or not the coin has dropped normally. When the payout coin detection sensor 47 is turned off, as shown in FIG. 13, the payout motor 41 resumes forward rotation. When the dispensed coin detection sensor 47 is not turned off, as shown in FIG. 14, the dispensed coin detection sensor 47 continues to stop with the second coin drop confirmation time T2 as the upper limit. is turned off, the normal rotation drive is restarted without waiting for the passage of the second coin drop confirmation time T2.

The first coin drop check time T1 is the minimum stop time to check the drop of a coin after the payout cam 42 rotates half in the forward direction (after the payout slide 32 is fully pulled out). In the illustrated example, the first coin drop confirmation time T1 is set to 70 ms (milliseconds). The second coin drop confirmation time T2 is the maximum value of the time to stop for confirming the coin drop after the payout cam 42 rotates half in the forward direction (after the payout slide 32 is fully pulled out). In the illustrated example, the second coin drop confirmation time T2 is set to 1 s (seconds).

The reason why the first coin drop check time T1 (70 ms), which is the minimum stop time to check the coin drop, is provided is to avoid coin jamming. If the rotation speed of the payout motor is relatively low, it may be possible to omit the first coin drop check time T1.

The first coin drop confirmation time T1 and the second coin drop confirmation time T2 are set by a trade-off between the rate at which coins normally drop within the time and the payout time. From this point of view, the first coin drop confirmation time T1 is preferably 30 ms or more and 250 ms or less, and the second coin drop confirmation time T2 is preferably the first coin drop confirmation time T1 or more and 2 seconds or less.

FIG. 15 is a time chart when coin drop promotion processing (S349) is involved during the payout operation of the coin payout device 1 of the present embodiment.

When the paid-out coin detection sensor 47 does not turn OFF during the period from when the payout slide 32 is pulled out and stops to when the second coin drop confirmation time T2 (1 s) elapses (when the drop of the coin cannot be confirmed) ), a coin drop promotion process (S349) is performed.

The coin drop promotion process (S349) pushes back the payout slide 32 by a predetermined distance, stops at that position for a predetermined time, pulls out the payout slide 32 to the maximum extent again, and stops at that position for a predetermined time. This is a process of repeating an action a predetermined number of times. The operation of pushing back the payout slide 32 is performed by driving the payout motor 41 in reverse to rotate the payout cam 42 in the reverse direction (opposite direction of arrow A), and the distance of pushing back depends on the rotation angle of the payout cam 42, and by extension, It is controlled by the drive time of the payout motor 41 .

In this embodiment, the driving time of the payout motor 41 during the operation of pushing back the payout slide 32 by a predetermined distance and the operation of pulling out the payout slide 32 to the maximum again are both set as the coin drop promotion driving time T3. The stopping time at the pulled-out position and the pulled-out position are both set as the coin drop promotion stop time T4, and the number of repetitions of these operations is set as the coin drop promotion operation count N.

In the illustrated example, the coin drop promotion drive time T3 is set to 80 ms, the coin drop promotion stop time T4 is set to 500 ms, and the number of coin drop promotion operations N is set to 4 times. That is, in the coin drop promotion process (S349), the operation of reverse driving for 80 ms, stopping for 500 ms, driving forward for 80 ms, and stopping for 500 ms is repeated four times.

The coin drop promotion process (S349) of the present embodiment pushes back the payout slide 32 and then pulls it out again. It is distinguished from processing that repeats an action. In the coin drop promotion process (S349) of the present embodiment, it takes a relatively long time to pull out the payout slide 32 after it is pushed back by a predetermined distance and to push it back again after pulling it out again. One of the features is that a time stop time (T4) is provided.

In order to effectively eliminate the sticking of coins to other members, the distance to push back the payout slide 32 in the coin drop promotion process (S349) is determined by the diameter of each coin accommodation hole 32a and the coin accommodation hole 32a. It is set at a distance equal to or greater than the maximum value of the difference between the diameter of the coin to be Further, the distance by which the payout slide 32 is pushed back is set in all the coin tubes 31 so that the coins of the coin tubes 31 are not housed in the coin housing holes 32a of the payout slides 32 again. If the coins of the coin tube 31 are pushed back to a distance where the coins of the coin tube 31 may be accommodated in any of the coin accommodation holes 32a, the coins are accommodated again in the coin accommodation holes 32a from which the coins were normally dispensed, and double payment is not possible. will occur.

In addition, the distance by which the payout slide 32 is pushed back is such that the end (rear end) of the coin on the side of the bottom plate 33 is away from the bottom plate 33 so that the coin that is no longer sticking to other members can quickly drop. It is preferably set so as to be outside and within a range where coins can drop from the coin receiving hole 32 a of the payout slide 32 .

FIG. 16 is a schematic top view of the payout cam 42 showing the relationship between the rotation angle of the payout cam 42 of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment and the position of the coin received in the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32. FIG. In FIG. 16, the solid line indicates the position of the engaging projection 42a of the payout cam 42 in the standby state, and the dashed line indicates the position in which the payout cam 42 is half-rotated in the forward direction (arrow A direction) and stopped. The engaging projection 42a of the payout cam 42 moves along the circle indicated by the dotted line as the payout cam 42 rotates in the forward direction (direction of arrow A).

When the engaging protrusion 42a exists within the area Ra, the coin received in the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32 is detected by the payout coin detection sensor 47, and the payout coin detection sensor 47 is turned ON. When the engaging protrusion 42a exists within the range of the region Rb, the coin can drop from the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32. As shown in FIG. When the engaging projection 42a exists within the range of the region Rc, the payout cam 42 has made more than half a turn in the forward direction (direction of arrow A), and the carrier sensor 48 is ON. Further, when the engaging projection 42a exists within the range of the region Rd, a coin stored in the coin tube 31 may be stored in any of the coin storage holes 32a of the payout slide 32. .

The coin drop promotion stop time T4 of the coin drop promotion process (S349) is set by other members of the coin (the inner wall of the coin receiving hole 32a, other coins stacked on top of the coin to be dispensed, the tip of the change slide 44, etc.). ), the time should be longer than the time normally required for the coin to drop. As a result of research, the inventors of the present invention found that the cause of coins sticking to other members is dew condensation, water exposure, freezing, dust, sticky dirt, deformation of coins, and the like. It has been found that the process of eliminating sticking takes a considerable amount of time, and furthermore, it has been found that it is preferable to set the coin drop promotion stop time T4 to a relatively long time of 300 ms or longer. However, if the coin drop promotion stop time T4 is made too long, the time required for paying out the coins will become longer. Therefore, it is preferable that the coin drop promotion stop time T4 is 300 ms or more and 1 s or less.

The number of times N of the coin drop promotion operation is set by a trade-off between the probability that the sticking of the coin to another member is eliminated by one coin drop promotion operation and the coin payout time. As a result of the research conducted by the inventors of the present invention, most of the sticking of coins that can be eliminated by the coin drop acceleration operation can be eliminated by repeating the coin drop acceleration operation several times. It was found that sticking of coins, which is eliminated by the coin drop acceleration operation, is very small. From such a point of view, it is preferable that the number of times N of the coin drop promotion operation is set to 1 time or more and 10 times or less.

FIG. 17 is a flow chart during the dispensing operation of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment. 17 to 21 relate to coins to be dispensed.

During the payout operation, first, flag A and flag B are cleared (flag A=0, flag B=0) (S1). Next, the change solenoid 46 corresponding to the coin tube 31 from which coins are to be paid out is turned ON (S2). When the change solenoid 46 is turned ON, the change lever 45 is attracted upward, and the engagement between the change lever 45 and the change slide 44 is released. Next, a payout motor drive process (S3) is performed to drive the payout motor 41 to pay out coins. After the payout motor driving process (S3), the change solenoid 46 corresponding to the coin tube 31 from which coins are to be paid out is turned off (S4). Next, a payout result determination process (S5) is performed to determine whether or not the coins have been properly paid out, and the payout operation ends.

FIG. 18 is a flow chart of the payout motor driving process (S3) of the coin payout device 1 of this embodiment.

In the payout motor driving process (S3), first, the payout motor 41 starts forward rotation driving (S31). While the payout motor 41 is rotating forward, it is determined whether or not the carrier sensor 48 is ON (S32), and when the carrier sensor 48 is turned ON, the payout motor 41 is stopped (S33).

Also, during the period from when the payout motor 41 starts forward rotation to when the carrier sensor 48 is turned on, it is determined whether or not the payout coin detection sensor 47 is ON (S38). When turned ON, flag A is set (flag A=1) (S39). The coin payout sensor is turned ON when coins are accommodated in the coin accommodation hole 32a of the payout slide 32 . When coins are not stored in the coin storage hole 32a of the payout slide 32 due to some abnormality, the payout coin detection sensor 47 does not turn ON and remains OFF.

After the payout motor 41 stops, a coin drop confirmation process (S34) is performed. In this coin drop confirmation process (S34), it is confirmed whether or not the coin to be paid has fallen from the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32, and when the coin to be paid has not fallen from the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32. This is a process for promoting the dropping of coins.

After the coin drop confirmation process (S34) is performed, the payout motor 41 starts forward rotation (S35). While the payout motor 41 is driving forward, it is determined whether or not the carrier sensor 48 is OFF (S36). When the carrier sensor 48 is turned OFF, the payout motor 41 is stopped (S37). The payout motor driving process (S3) ends.

FIG. 19 is a flow chart of the coin drop confirmation process (S34) of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment.

In the coin drop confirmation process (S34), first, the T1 timer that counts the first coin drop confirmation time T1 (70 ms) and the T2 timer that counts the second coin drop confirmation time T2 (1 s) start counting (S341). , S342).

After the T1 timer (70 ms) ends (S343), it is determined whether or not the payout coin detection sensor 47 is OFF (S344). If the payout coin detection sensor 47 is OFF, the flag B is set ( Flag B=1) (S346). The dispensed coin detection sensor 47 is turned off when the coin drops from the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32 and the coin is normally dispensed. Also, when coins are not stored in the coin storage hole 32a of the payout slide 32 from the beginning due to some abnormality, the payout coin detection sensor 47 is turned off. In this case, flag A remains unset.

Next, it is determined whether or not flag A is set (whether or not flag A=1) (S345). If the flag A is not set, the coin drop confirmation process (S34) is terminated.

If flag A is set, then it is determined whether or not flag B is set (whether flag B=1) (S347). If the flag B is set, the coin drop confirmation process (S34) is terminated.

If the flag B is not set, it is determined whether or not the T2 timer (1 s) has expired (S348). If the T2 timer (1 s) has not expired, the process returns to the determination of whether or not the payout coin detection sensor 47 is OFF (S344), and the same processing is performed thereafter. When the T2 timer (1 s) has expired, the coin drop promotion process (S349) is performed, and the coin drop confirmation process (S34) ends.

FIG. 20 is a flow chart of the coin drop promotion process (S349) of the coin dispensing device 1 of this embodiment. This coin drop promotion process (S349) is executed when the flag A is set and the flag B is not set, that is, when a coin is received in the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32, but the coin is not in the coin receiving hole. This process is performed only when it has not fallen from 32a.

In the coin drop promotion process (S349), the counter is first set to zero. Next, after the dispensing motor 41 reversely drives for a coin drop promotion drive time T3 (80 ms), stops for a coin drop promotion stop time T4 (500 ms), and then forwards for a coin drop promotion drive time T3 (80 ms), the coin The fall acceleration stop time T4 (500 ms) stops (S3492). Next, the counter value is incremented by 1 (S3493), and it is determined whether or not the counter value is equal to or greater than the number of coin drop promotion operations N (4 times) (S3494). When the value of the counter is not equal to or greater than the number of times N (4 times) of the coin drop promotion operation, the coin drop promotion driving time T3 (80 ms) of the payout motor 41 is reversely driven, the coin drop promotion stop time T4 (500 ms) is stopped, and the coin drop promotion driving time is stopped. T3 (80 ms) normal rotation drive and T4 (500 ms) stop for coin drop promotion stop time (S3492) are performed again.

That is, here, the coin drop promotion drive time T3 (80 ms) reverse drive of the dispensing motor 41, coin drop promotion stop time T4 (500 ms) stop, coin drop promotion drive time T3 (80 ms) forward rotation drive and coin drop promotion stop time A process of repeating a T4 (500 ms) stop for the number of times N (4 times) of coin drop promotion operation is performed.

When the value of the counter is equal to or greater than the number of coin drop promotion operations N (4 times), the dispensing motor 41 rotates forward for 95 ms and then stops for 1 second (S3495). Next, it is determined whether or not the payout coin detection sensor 47 is OFF (S3496), and if the payout coin detection sensor 47 is not OFF, the coin drop acceleration process (S349) is terminated, and the payout coin detection is performed. If the sensor 47 is OFF, the flag B is set (flag B=1), and the coin drop promotion process (S349) ends.

FIG. 21 is a flow chart of the payout result determination process (S5) of the coin payout device 1 of this embodiment.

In the payout result determination process (S5), first, it is determined whether the flag A is set (S51) and whether the flag B is set (S52, S53).

When both the flag A and the flag B are set, it is judged that the normal payout has been made (S54). If the flag A is set and the flag B is not set, it is determined that the coin received in the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32 does not drop and that the coin is not paid out (S55). If the flag A is not set and the flag B is set, it is determined that the coin is not paid out because the coin is not received in the coin receiving hole 32a of the payout slide 32 (S56). If neither flag A nor flag B is set, it is determined that an abnormality due to noise or the like has occurred in the payout coin detection sensor 47 (S57).

As described above, according to the coin dispensing device 1 of the present embodiment, space saving and weight reduction can be achieved, and abnormal coin dispensing can be suppressed.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the coin dispensing device of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. The coin dispenser of the present invention can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. Further, the coin dispensing device of the present invention is particularly suitable for a coin dispensing device that only dispenses coins during normal operation, but is not limited to this, and is a coin processing device that accepts and dispenses coins at the same time. It is also possible to apply to

1 coin dispensing device 10 control unit 11 first storage unit 12 second storage unit 2 coin dispensing device main body 3 coin storage cassette 31 coin tube 32 payout slide 32a coin storage hole 32b engagement hole that engages with the engagement protrusion of the payout slide 33 Bottom plate 4 Coin payout mechanism 41 Payout motor 42 Payout cam 42a Engagement protrusion engaged with groove of payout link 42b Rib portion corresponding to carrier sensor 43 Payout link 43a Engagement groove engaged with engagement protrusion of payout cam 43b Engagement protrusion engaged with the engagement hole of the payout link 44 Change slide 45 Change lever 46 Change solenoid 47 Payout coin detection sensor 48 Carrier sensor 9 External device C Coin

Claims (6)

a plurality of coin tubes in which coins are loaded and stored by denomination;
a payout slide provided with a plurality of coin receiving holes corresponding to the plurality of coin tubes;
a coin dispensing mechanism for dispensing coins by pulling out the payout slide;
After the payout slide is pulled out, it is checked whether or not the coin received in the coin receiving hole has fallen, and if it is not confirmed that the coin has dropped, the payout slide is pushed back by a predetermined distance, and the payout slide is pushed back by a predetermined distance. a control unit that repeats a predetermined number of times a coin drop promotion operation of stopping for a time, pulling out the payout slide again, and stopping at that position for a predetermined time;
The predetermined distance for pushing back the payout slide is set so that the coins stored in the coin tubes are not housed again in the coin housing holes of the payout slides in all of the coin tubes. and set so that the coin received in the coin receiving hole falls within a range in which the coin receiving hole of the payout slide can drop. The coin dispenser according to claim 1,
In the coin drop promotion operation, the predetermined time during which the payout slide is stopped after being pushed back by the predetermined distance, and the predetermined time during which the payout slide is stopped after being pulled out again are 300 ms or more and 1 s or less. A coin dispensing device characterized by: The coin dispenser according to claim 1 or 2,
A coin dispensing device, wherein the predetermined number of times of repeating the coin drop promotion operation in the process performed by the control unit is 1 time or more and 10 times or less. The coin dispensing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
a payout coin detection sensor arranged above an area where the coin accommodation hole is positioned when the payout slide is pulled out, and detecting the existence of the coin accommodated in the coin accommodation hole;
A coin dispensing device characterized in that confirmation of whether or not a coin received in the coin receiving hole has fallen in the processing performed by the control unit is performed based on whether or not the dispensed coin detection sensor detects a coin. The coin dispenser according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A region of the inner wall of the coin receiving hole of the payout slide, which is in contact with the rear end of the coin when the payout slide is pulled out from the coin tube, is flat and perpendicular to the direction in which the payout slide is pulled out. A coin dispensing device characterized by: a plurality of coin tubes in which coins are loaded and stored by denomination;
a payout slide provided with a plurality of coin receiving holes corresponding to the plurality of coin tubes;
a coin dispensing mechanism for dispensing coins by pulling out the payout slide;
After the payout slide is pulled out, it is checked whether or not the coin received in the coin receiving hole has fallen, and if it is not confirmed that the coin has dropped, the payout slide is pushed back by a predetermined distance, and the payout slide is pushed back by a predetermined distance. a control unit that repeats a predetermined number of times a coin drop promotion operation of stopping for a time, pulling out the payout slide again, and stopping at that position for a predetermined time;
The predetermined distance by which the payout slide is pushed back is set so that the coins stored in the coin tubes are not housed again in the coin housing holes of the payout slides in all of the coin tubes. can be,
A region of the inner wall of the coin receiving hole of the payout slide, which is in contact with the rear end of the coin when the payout slide is pulled out from the coin tube, is flat and perpendicular to the direction in which the payout slide is pulled out. A coin dispensing device characterized by:

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