JP7452240B2 - Coin handling equipment and automatic transaction equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a coin processing device and an automatic transaction device, and is suitable for application to, for example, an automatic teller machine (ATM) in which a customer inserts banknotes or coins and performs a desired transaction.

Conventionally, automatic teller machines used in financial institutions, supermarkets, etc. have been used to allow customers or store staff to deposit cash such as banknotes or coins, or to dispense cash to customers or store staff, depending on the content of the transaction with the customer. Withdrawal methods are widespread.

Some automatic teller machines have a coin processing device therein that processes coins, for example. The coin processing device includes, for example, a deposit/withdrawal section that exchanges coins with customers or clerks, a stacking/separating section that stacks coins and separates the stacked coins one by one, and a transport section that transports coins. It has an identification section (also called a recognition section) that identifies the denomination, authenticity, etc. of a coin, and a storage section that stores coins for each denomination.

Among these, the accumulation/separation section is configured to be rotatable, for example, an inclined disk (also called a rotating disk) whose central axis is inclined from the horizontal direction, and a protrusion is provided on the disk surface, and an accumulation space for accumulating coins is formed. It has been proposed that the lower end of the accumulation cover (also called hopper) is formed along the lower part of the outer periphery of the inclined disk (for example, see Patent Document 1). In this stacking/separating section, coins are hooked onto a protrusion and fed out one by one by rotating an inclined disk.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-149041

In such a stacking/separating section, it is desired to improve the accuracy of detecting the presence or absence of coins remaining at the bottom of the stacking space.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and it is an object of the present invention to propose a coin processing device and an automatic transaction device that can improve the accuracy of detecting the presence or absence of coins remaining in a collection space.

In order to solve this problem, the coin processing device of the present invention includes a stacking/separating section that stacks coins, separates the coins one by one, and delivers the coins, and a transport section that transports the coins dispensed from the stacking/separating section. The accumulating and separating section has a disk surface whose normal line is inclined upward with respect to the horizontal direction, is rotatably supported around the central axis of the disk surface, and rotates in a predetermined rotation direction. an inclined disk, an accumulation cover provided on the normal side of the disk surface of the inclined disk and forming a coin accumulation space for accumulating coins between the inclined disk and the disk surface, and a part of the outer circumference of the disk surface on the central axis side. A notch around the hole formed by cutting out the hole, and an outer light that is provided inside the notch around the hole, penetrates the inclined disk, and passes the detection light of a sensor that detects whether or not coins remain in the coin accumulation space. It has a passage hole , and a separation protrusion that is provided at a position away from the outer periphery of the disk surface toward the center axis, projects from the disk surface in the normal direction, rotates together with the inclined disk, and contacts and conveys the coin. I did it like that.

Further, the automatic transaction device of the present invention is provided with an operation section that accepts operations by a user and the above-mentioned coin processing device.

The present invention can improve coin detection performance by preventing foreign matter from being caught by the notch around the hole, while making it easier for coins to close the outer light passage hole, which is smaller than the notch around the hole.

According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a coin processing device and an automatic transaction device that can improve the accuracy of detecting the presence or absence of coins remaining in the accumulation space.

It is a perspective view showing the composition of an automatic teller machine. FIG. 2 is a right side view showing the configuration of the coin processing device. The configuration (1) of the upper separation part is shown, with (A) being a front view and (B) being a right side view. FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line A1-A2 in FIG. 3A, showing the structure (2) of the upper separation part. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line B1-B2 in FIG. 4, showing the structure (3) of the upper separation part. FIG. 3 is a right side view showing the configuration of the residual stirring protrusion and the feeding of coins. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C1-C2 in FIG. 6, showing the delivery of coins in the upper separating section. FIG. 6 is a right side view showing the transfer of coins from the accumulation/separation section to the separation/conveyance section. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the configuration (4) of the upper separation part, in which (A) is the present embodiment and (B) is a comparative example. FIG. 3 is a right side view showing the arrangement of an outer light passage hole and an inner light passage hole. FIG. 3 is a right side view showing the configuration of an outer passage notch. FIG. 3 is a right side view showing the configuration of an inner light passage hole. It is a right view which shows the structure of an inner light passage hole, (A) is this Embodiment, (B) is a comparative example.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described using the drawings.

[1. Embodiment]
[1-1. Configuration of automated teller machine]
As shown in FIG. 1, an automatic teller machine 1 as an automatic transaction device is constructed around a box-shaped housing 2, and is installed in, for example, financial institutions and various commercial facilities, and is used by users ( In other words, they conduct cash-related transactions such as deposit processing and withdrawal processing with customers, bank employees, maintenance staff, etc. of financial institutions and commercial facilities.

The housing 2 is provided with a reception section 3 on the front side thereof at a location where the user can easily insert banknotes, operate the touch panel, etc. while facing the user. The reception section 3 is provided with a passbook entry/exit 4, a card entry/exit 5, a coin entry/exit 6, a banknote entry/exit 7, an operation display section 8, etc., and is used to exchange cash, cards, etc. with users. In addition to direct communication, notifications of transaction-related information and operation instructions are accepted.

The passbook inlet/outlet 4 is a part where a passbook is inserted and ejected. A passbook processing section (not shown) is provided on the back side of the passbook entry/exit 4 for reading magnetic information from a magnetic recording section provided on the back cover of the passbook and recording the details of transactions in the passbook. There is. The card inlet/outlet 5 is a portion into which various cards such as cash cards are inserted or ejected. A card processing section (not shown) is provided on the back side of the card entry/exit 5 for reading account numbers and the like magnetically recorded on various cards.

The coin deposit/withdrawal port 6 is a part into which coins to be deposited by the user are inserted and coins to be withdrawn to the user are discharged. The banknote deposit/withdrawal port 7 is a portion into which banknotes are deposited by the user and from which banknotes to be withdrawn to the user are discharged. The coin deposit/withdrawal port 6 and bill deposit/withdrawal port 7 are opened or closed by driving shutters, respectively. The operation display unit 8 as an operation unit is a touch panel that integrates a liquid crystal display panel that displays an operation screen, transaction details, etc. during a transaction, and a touch sensor that detects input operations by the user.

Below, the side of the automatic teller machine 1 that the user faces is referred to as the front side, the opposite side is referred to as the rear side, the left and right sides viewed from the user facing the front side are respectively referred to as the left side and the right side, and furthermore, the upper side and the right side are referred to as the left side and right side, respectively. Define and explain the lower side.

Inside the housing 2, there is a main control unit 9 that centrally controls the entire automatic teller machine 1, a coin processing device 10 that performs various processes regarding coins to be traded, and a banknote processing device that performs various processes regarding banknotes. A device (not shown), etc. are provided. The main control unit 9 is mainly composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) (not shown), and performs deposit processing and withdrawal processing by reading and executing a predetermined program from a ROM (Read Only Memory), flash memory, etc. (not shown). Performs various processing such as gold processing. Furthermore, the main control section 9 has a storage section made up of a RAM (Random Access Memory), a hard disk drive, a flash memory, etc., and stores various information in this storage section.

The coin processing device 10 has a shape similar to a rectangular parallelepiped as a whole, and is attached to the housing 2 via a slide rail (not shown). Further, a door (not shown) that can be opened and closed is provided on the front side or the rear side of the housing 2. Therefore, when maintenance work or the like is performed on the automatic teller machine 1, the coins can be transferred by opening the front or rear door of the housing 2 and sliding the coin processing device 10 forward or backward. The processing device 10 is located outside the casing 2 and housed inside the casing 2.

[1-2. Configuration of coin processing device]
As shown in FIG. 2, the coin processing device 10 includes a plurality of parts that perform various processes regarding coins inside a coin processing device housing 11. This coin is made of a non-magnetic material with sufficient strength, such as an alloy of copper and nickel or aluminum, and is formed into a thin plate shape. Incidentally, the coin processing device 10 is assumed to handle a plurality of types of coins having different diameters and thicknesses. Hereinafter, the coin with the largest diameter handled by the coin processing device 10 will be referred to as a maximum diameter coin, and the coin with the smallest diameter will be referred to as a minimum diameter coin. In the coin processing apparatus 10 installed in Japan, the maximum diameter coin is a 500 yen coin, and the minimum diameter coin is a 1 yen coin. By the way, the thickness of a 1 yen coin is approximately 1.5 mm.

Inside the coin processing device housing 11, there are six deposit/withdrawal sections 13, a chute section 14, an upper separation section 15, a recognition conveyance section 16, a delivery section 17, a pin belt conveyance section 18, located relatively above or near the center. A stacker section 21, a withdrawal conveyance section 22, and a temporary holding section 23 are provided. Inside the coin processing device housing 11, there is a coin control unit 12, a replenishment collection store 24, a first replenishment reject store 25, a second replenishment reject store 26, a reject store 27, and a replenishment reject store 27 on a relatively lower side. A storage 28 and a lower separation section 29 are provided.

Like the main control unit 9, the coin control unit 12 is mainly configured with a CPU (not shown), and performs deposit transactions, withdrawal transactions, etc. by reading and executing a predetermined program from a ROM, flash memory, etc. (not shown). The coin processing device 10 is centrally controlled. Further, the coin control unit 12 has an internal storage unit consisting of a RAM, a flash memory, etc., and stores various information in this storage unit.

The deposit/withdrawal unit 13 allows the user to deposit coins or withdraws coins from the user by passing coins to and from the user. The deposit/withdrawal unit 13 includes a container 13A that has an opening on the upper side and stores coins, a shutter 13B that opens and closes the opening, and a sensor (not shown) that detects the presence or absence of coins in the container 13A. )have.

When the customer inserts coins into the container 13A with the shutter 13B open, the deposit/withdrawal section 13 closes the shutter 13B, transfers the coins from the container 13A to the chute section 14, and transfers the coins to the chute section 14. The inner part is lowered to reach the upper separation part 15. Further, when a coin is conveyed from a pin belt conveying section 18 (described later) with the shutter 13B closed, the deposit/withdrawal section 13 stores the coin in the container 13A, and then opens the shutter 13B to send the coin to the customer. Let them receive it.

The upper separating section 15 is composed of an accumulation/separation section 15A that occupies a relatively large volume on the lower side, and a separation/conveyance section 15B that is formed to protrude upward from the accumulation/separation section 15A. The upper separating section 15 stacks coins in the stacking/separating section 15A, separates the coins one by one, and transports the coins upward by the separating and transporting section 15B, and further transports them backward along the transport path. and hand it over to the recognition conveyance section 16.

The recognition conveyance section 16 is located on the right side of the chute section 14, and images the coin while conveying it, and based on the obtained image signal, determines the denomination, authenticity, degree of damage, etc. of the coin. It is determined whether the coin can be handled. Then, the recognition conveyance unit 16 notifies the coin control unit 12 of the obtained determination result as the recognition result of the coin, and also delivers the coin to the delivery unit 17. The delivery section 17 delivers the coins received from the recognition conveyance section 16 to the pin belt conveyance section 18.

The pin belt conveyance section 18 surrounds the lower front side, lower side, rear side, and upper side of the stacker section 21 by a front pin belt conveyance section 18F, a lower pin belt conveyance section 18L, a rear pin belt conveyance section 18R, and an upper pin belt conveyance section 18U, respectively, and carries coins. A transport route is formed as a transport route. The pin belt conveyance section 18 is composed of a conveyance guide that comes into contact with the surface of the coin and guides the coin to proceed along the conveyance path, and a pin belt that runs approximately along the conveyance path. This pin belt is provided with a pin that comes into contact with the trailing end of the coin and pushes it in the transport direction. By running the pin belt, the pin belt conveyance section 18 conveys the coins received from the transfer section 17 along the conveyance path and discharges them into the container 13A of the deposit/withdrawal section 13.

Further, the pin belt conveying section 18 is provided with branching sections 19 for branching the coin conveying path at a plurality of locations in the front lower part and the lower side of the stacker section 21, respectively. A guide section 30 for guiding the coin is provided on the left side of each branch section 19.

Each branching section 19 has a rotatable guide plate, an actuator, etc. (none of which are shown), and by rotating the guide plate under the control of the coin control section 12, coins can be continuously transferred. It is switched whether to advance along the pin belt conveyance section 18 or to branch to each guide section 30. Each guide section 30 advances the coins to the replenishment collection warehouse 24, the first replenishment reject store 25 or the second replenishment reject store 26, the temporary storage section 23, the reject store 27, the unclaimed storage 28, etc., respectively.

Furthermore, the pin belt conveying section 18 is provided with stacker branch sections 20 at six locations above each of the six stacker sections 21 . A guide section 31 for guiding coins to the stacker section 21 is provided on the left side of each stacker branch section 20. Each stacker branching section 20 is configured similarly to each branching section 19, and by rotating a guide plate based on the control of the coin control section 12, the coins can continue to advance along the pin belt conveyance section 18. , or branch to each stacker section 21.

The stacker sections 21 are each associated with coins of a predetermined denomination, and include a guide section 31 provided on the upper side and a stacker section 21 that stacks coins vertically on the lower side of the guide section 31. It has a part 32 and a payout part 33 that feeds out coins from the lower side of the stacking part 32. When the stacker section 21 receives the coins transported by the pin belt transport section 18 from the stacker branch section 20, the guide section 31 guides the coins to the stacking section 32 and stacks them. Further, under the control of the coin control section 12, the stacker section 21 feeds out the coins accumulated in the stacking section 32 one by one using the feeding section 33 and drops them into the dispensing conveyance section 22 or the temporary storage section 23 below.

The dispensing conveyance section 22 is located on the right side of the pin belt conveyance section 18, and is configured like a hollow rectangular parallelepiped with an open top and front side, and forms a space in which coins can be stored. Further, the dispensing conveyance section 22 has a belt conveyance mechanism made of a belt, a pulley, etc. built into the bottom thereof, and coins fed out from the stacker section 21 are placed or accumulated on the belt. With the coins placed or accumulated on the belt, this dispensing conveyance unit 22 causes the upper part of the belt to run forward, thereby causing the coins to fall into the temporary storage unit 23 on the front side. .

The temporary storage section 23 has a configuration in which the rear end of the dispensing conveyance section 22 is lowered and the front end is raised, and the left and right side plates are triangular. , a belt transport mechanism is built into the bottom. Therefore, the temporary storage section 23 places or accumulates the coins fed out from the stacker section 21 and the coins conveyed from the dispensing conveyance section 22 on a belt in the internal space. In addition, the temporary holding section 23 feeds out the coins to the upper separation section 15 on the front side by running the upper part of the belt diagonally upward in the state in which the coins are placed or accumulated on the belt. , let it fall inside.

The replenishment collection warehouse 24 has a stacking section for stacking coins therein, a transport mechanism for transporting the coins stacked in the stacking section, and the like. This replenishment and collection storage 24 accumulates coins guided by the guide section 30, and also feeds out the coins accumulated inside to the front and delivers them to the lower separating section 29. The first replenishment reject store 25 and the second refill reject store 26 each have a space therein for accumulating coins, and accumulate coins guided by the guide section 30. The reject warehouse 27 and the unclaimed storage 28 each have a space therein for accumulating coins, and each accumulates the coins guided by the guide section 30.

The lower separation section 29 is arranged at a position adjacent to the rear side of the replenishment and recovery storage 24 . Although the lower separating section 29 has a similar configuration to the upper separating section 15, it is different from the upper separating section 15 in the direction in which it is attached to the coin processing device housing 11. The lower separating section 29 is composed of an accumulating/separating section 29A and a separating/conveying section 29B that correspond to the accumulating/separating section 15A and the separating/conveying section 15B, respectively. The lower separation section 29 receives coins from the replenishment collection warehouse 24 and accumulates them therein, separates the accumulated coins one by one, transports them upward one by one, and releases them into the temporary storage section 23. .

[1-3. Transport of coins in various processes]
Next, various processes involving the conveyance of coins in the coin processing device 10, ie, conveyance and accumulation of coins in deposit processing, withdrawal processing, etc., will be explained. Here, each process performed by the coin processing device 10 when performing a deposit transaction and a withdrawal transaction between the automatic teller machine 1 and the user will be explained.

When a deposit transaction is performed with a user in the automatic teller machine 1 (FIG. 1), the coin processing device 10 recognizes the denomination, etc. of the coin deposited by the user through the deposit counting process in the previous stage. The number of coins is counted, and each coin is transported and stored at an appropriate storage location through subsequent deposit storage processing. Specifically, when the user inserts a coin into the deposit/withdrawal unit 13 in the deposit counting process in the previous stage, the coin processing device 10 operates the chute unit 14, the upper separation unit 15, the recognition conveyance unit 16, the delivery unit 17, and the pin belt conveyance unit. 18 and then stored in the temporary storage section 23.

At this time, the coin processing device 10 aggregates the deposit amount based on the recognition result of each coin by the recognition conveyance section 16, displays it on the operation display section 8 (FIG. 1), and allows the user to continue the deposit transaction, or Let them choose whether to cancel or not. When the user selects to continue, the coin processing device 10 performs the subsequent deposit receiving process, and when the user selects to cancel, the coin processing device 10 cancels the deposit transaction and stores coins as in the case of withdrawal processing, which will be described later. It is transported to the deposit/withdrawal department 13 and returned.

In the subsequent deposit storage process, the coin processing device 10 sequentially transfers coins from the temporary storage section 23 to the stacker section 21 via the upper separation section 15, the recognition conveyance section 16, the delivery section 17, the pin belt conveyance section 18, and the stacker branch section 20. Transport to and accumulate. At this time, the coin processing device 10 transports each coin to the stacker unit 21 according to the denomination of the coin based on the recognition result of each coin by the recognition transport unit 16.

In addition, when a withdrawal transaction is performed with a user in the automatic teller machine 1 (FIG. 1), the coin processing device 10 transfers coins of the amount instructed by the user to the deposit/withdrawal section through the withdrawal process. Transfer to 13 and withdraw money. Specifically, when the coin processing device 10 receives an operation input indicating that a withdrawal transaction is to be started or an amount to be withdrawn from the user via the operation display unit 8 (FIG. 1), the coin processing device 10 starts the withdrawal process and inputs the amount to be withdrawn. The corresponding denomination and number of coins are withdrawn from each stacker section 21 and accumulated in the temporary storage section 23 via the dispensing transport section 22. Next, the coin processing device 10 sequentially passes through the temporary holding section 23, the upper separation section 15, the recognition conveyance section 16, the delivery section 17, and the pin belt conveyance section 18, and conveys the coins to the deposit/withdrawal section 13 for storage and use. have someone receive it.

Incidentally, in addition to deposit processing and withdrawal processing, the coin processing device 10 performs a replenishment process of replenishing coins from the replenishment and collection warehouse 24 to the stacker section 21, a collection process of collecting coins from the stacker section 21 to the replenishment and collection warehouse 24, etc. It is also now possible to do so.

[1-4. Configuration of upper separation section]
As shown in FIGS. 3(A) and 3(B), the upper separating section 15 is configured around a separating section housing 40 located on the left side, and the upper separating section 15 is configured around a separating section housing 40 located on the left side, and is located at the center or on the right side of the separating section housing 40. The lower part is covered by an accumulation cover 41. Incidentally, in the upper separation section 15, in the vertical direction, a portion corresponding to the accumulation cover 41 is an accumulation separation section 15A, and an upper side thereof is a separation conveyance section 15B.

A motor 42 is attached to the left side of the separation unit housing 40, a plurality of gears (not shown) are incorporated therein, and an inclined disk 43 is attached to the right side. The motor 42 is provided with an output shaft 42S on the right side, and by rotating the output shaft 42S, a driving force is transmitted to the inclined disc 43 via an internal gear.

As shown in FIG. 4, the inclined disk 43 is formed into a disk shape with a diameter sufficiently larger than that of a coin. This inclined disk 43 is composed of a back side disk part 76 and a front side disk part 78 shown in FIG. 9(A), which are formed into substantially similar thin disk shapes. The front side disk part 78 is located on the right side of the back side disk part 76, and is fixed to the back side disk part 76 by being screwed to the back side disk part 76.

In the front disk portion 78 (FIG. 4), a disk surface 43S, which is a right disk surface, is generally flat. Incidentally, the inclined disk 43 is manufactured, for example, by cutting a metal plate with relatively high hardness. The tilted disc 43 is tilted so that the central axis 43C faces upward with respect to the horizontal direction, specifically, diagonally upward and to the right. Therefore, the upper portion of the disk surface 43S is tilted slightly to the left with respect to the vertical direction. Further, the inclined disk 43 is rotatably supported around a central axis 43C, and when driving force is transmitted from the motor 42 through a gear, the inclined disk 43 rotates in the direction of arrow R1 (clockwise in FIG. 4, hereinafter referred to as direction).

The disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43 is provided with a plurality of separation protrusions 44 that protrude diagonally upward to the right, which is the normal direction. The separation protrusions 44 are attached to the disk surface 43S at locations slightly inward from the outer periphery at respective locations dividing the outer periphery of the inclined disk 43 into seven equal parts. The separation protrusion 44 has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape extending toward the center of the inclined disk 43 (that is, the central axis 43C). That is, the separation protrusion 44 is relatively long in the radial direction connecting the central axis 43C and the outer periphery 43T on the disk surface 43S, relatively short in the circumferential direction, and sufficiently short (that is, thin) in the left-right direction. Further, the length (that is, the thickness) of the separation protrusion 44 in the left-right direction is approximately 1.5 mm, which is equal to or less than the thickness of one coin.

Furthermore, the inclined disk 43 is hollowed out from the outer circumference 43T toward the center (center axis 43C) at seven locations near the seven separation protrusions 44 on the outer periphery of the back disk portion 76 and the front disk portion 78. A pin notch 45 is formed. The pin notch 45 has a shape similar to a triangle with one side being the outer periphery 43T of the inclined disk 43, and has a separation protrusion near the apex near the central axis 43C of the inclined disk 43. It is almost adjacent to 44.

In addition, in the inclined disk 43, residual agitation protrudes from the disk surface 43S in the normal direction at seven locations on the periphery of each pin notch 45 on the disk surface 43S, that is, in the vicinity of the outer circumference 43T. A protrusion 46 is attached. The residual stirring projections 46 include a standard residual stirring projection 46S and a large residual stirring projection 46L larger than the standard residual stirring projection 46S. Hereinafter, the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S and the large residual stirring protrusion 46L will also be collectively referred to as the residual stirring protrusion 46 as a stirring protrusion.

This residual stirring protrusion 46 is located on the arrow R2 direction (counterclockwise in FIG. 4, hereinafter also referred to as the reverse rotation direction) side of the pin notch 45, that is, when the inclined disk 43 rotates in the arrow R1 direction. It is installed in a region on the downstream side of the notch 45.

The standard residual stirring protrusion 46S has a conical shape as a whole, and the vicinity of its apex is rounded into a curved shape, and its central axis is directed diagonally upward to the right from the surface of the inclined disk 43, and is aligned along the normal direction of the disk surface 43S. ing. The standard residual stirring protrusion 46S has a height (that is, the distance from the disk surface 43S to the apex) of 1.5 mm. In the upper separation part 15, as shown in FIG. 6(A), when the largest diameter coin CNa is positioned between the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S and the separation protrusion 44 and hooked on the separation protrusion 44, the coin CN and the standard A certain amount of clearance is formed between the remaining stirring protrusions 46S.

On the other hand, the large residual stirring protrusion 46L, like the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S, has an overall conical shape with its central axis along the normal direction of the disc surface 43S, and the vicinity of its apex is rounded into a curved shape. It is being On the other hand, the large residual stirring protrusion 46L is larger in diameter and height than the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S. Specifically, the height of the large residual stirring protrusion 46L is 3 mm, which is greater than the height of the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S, that is, greater than the protruding distance of the separation protrusion 44 and pin 66 from the disk surface 43S. ]. In the upper separation section 15, as shown in FIG. 6(B), when the largest diameter coin CNa is positioned between the large residual stirring protrusion 46L and the separation protrusion 44 and hooked on the separation protrusion 44, the largest diameter coin CNa Almost no gap is formed between the large remaining agitating protrusions 46L, and they appear to be adjacent to each other.

On the other hand, a coin guide 50 (FIG. 4) is attached to the separation unit housing 40. The coin guide 50 includes an arc-shaped storage guide 51 adjacent to the outer circumference of the lower portion of the inclined disk 43, and a front conveyance guide 52 extending linearly upward from the front end of the storage guide 51. ing.

The storage guide 51 forms a small gap between the storage guide inner peripheral surface 51S, which is an inner peripheral surface of the storage guide 51, and the outer peripheral surface of the inclined disc 43. The front conveyance guide 52 has a flat rear side surface, and is continuous with the storage guide inner circumferential surface 51S at its lower end. For convenience of explanation, the rear side surface of the front conveyance guide 52 will also be referred to as the conveyance reference plane FS below. The upper end of this front conveyance guide 52 has reached a position higher than the upper end of the inclined disk 43. Further, about the lower half of the front conveyance guide 52 is included in the accumulation/separation section 15A, and about the upper half is included in the separation and conveyance section 15B.

As shown in FIG. 5, left conveyance guides 53 and 54 are provided on the left side of the rear side of the front conveyance guide 52. As shown in FIG. The right side surface of the left conveyance guide 53 is formed in a planar shape, and is located in substantially the same plane as the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43. Further, the left conveyance guide 53 has a front portion in contact with the front conveyance guide 52, and a lower rear portion thereof is inclined in a gentle arc shape along the outer peripheral surface of the inclined disk 43. Furthermore, the rear portion of the left conveyance guide 53 is formed into a planar shape with its normal line generally directed toward the rear, and is generally linear when viewed from the right direction.

The left conveyance guide 54 is provided at a position slightly away from the left conveyance guide 53 on the rear side of the left conveyance guide 53 . The right side surface of the left conveyance guide 54 is formed in a planar shape like the right side surface of the left conveyance guide 53, and is located in substantially the same plane as the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43. Hereinafter, the right side surfaces of the left conveyance guides 53 and 54 will also be referred to as the conveyance surface FC. The front portion of the left conveyance guide 54 is formed into a planar shape with its normal line generally facing forward, and is generally linear in the vertical direction when viewed from the right. As a result, in the separating unit housing 40, a groove shape extending in the vertical direction is formed between the left conveyance guides 53 and 54. Further, the lower rear side portion of the left conveyance guide 54 is inclined in a gentle arc shape along the outer peripheral surface of the inclined disk 43. Incidentally, in the separation section housing 40, the front conveyance guide 52, the left conveyance guide 53, and the left conveyance guide 54 are integrally constructed as one component.

Furthermore, a rear conveyance guide 55 is provided on the rear side of the left conveyance guide 54 in the separating unit housing 40 . The front side surface of the rear conveyance guide 55 is formed in a planar shape with its normal line generally facing forward, and is generally straight in the vertical direction when viewed from the right. For convenience of explanation, hereinafter, the space surrounded by the front conveyance guide 52, left conveyance guides 53 and 54, and rear conveyance guide 55 will also be referred to as conveyance space SC. This conveyance space SC is a space on the right side of the conveyance surface FC and on the rear side of the conveyance reference plane FS.

On the other hand, a belt pulley 61 is disposed on the left side of the inclined disk 43 inside the separation unit housing 40. The belt pulley 61 is formed into a flat disk shape as a whole, and its diameter is slightly smaller than the diameter of the inclined disk 43. Further, the belt pulley 61 is attached to the inclined disk 43 so that its central axis coincides with the center axis of the inclined disk 43 and the disk surface is aligned substantially parallel to the inclined disk 43. Therefore, the belt pulley 61 can rotate together with the inclined disk 43.

Furthermore, the separation unit housing 40 has a front pulley 62, an upper pulley 63, and a rear pulley 64, each having a disk shape that is sufficiently smaller than the belt pulley 61, above the belt pulley 61. The front pulley 62 is located above and in front of the belt pulley 61. The upper pulley 63 is located on the rear upper side of the front pulley 62. The rear pulley 64 is located on the rear lower side of the upper pulley 63 and above the belt pulley 61. The front pulley 62, the upper pulley 63, and the rear pulley 64 are each rotatably supported by the separating part housing 40, and their respective right surfaces are on the same plane as the right surface of the belt pulley 61 or on the same plane. Located nearby.

In addition to this, the separating unit housing 40 is provided with a belt 65. The belt 65 is an endless belt made of a flexible material such as resin or rubber. They are stretched so that they touch each other.

Specifically, the belt 65 rotates in the direction of arrow R1 from near the upper end of the outer peripheral surface of the belt pulley 61 (that is, clockwise in FIG. 4) to the rear, lower, front, and upper front sides. Cross over and make contact. Furthermore, the belt 65 contacts the lower rear portion or the vicinity of the rear end of the front pulley 62 while being in contact with the upper front portion of the belt pulley 61, and moves away from the circumferential side of the belt pulley 61 to the vicinity of the rear end of the front pulley 62. The upper pulley 63 is stretched upward and eventually comes into contact with the vicinity of the front end of the upper pulley 63. Subsequently, the belt 65 contacts the outer circumferential surface of the upper pulley 63 from near the front end to the upper and rear sides, and is stretched slightly downward from near the rear end of the upper pulley 63 so that the belt 65 contacts the outer circumferential surface of the upper pulley 63 . It abuts near the front end. Further, the belt 65 contacts the outer circumferential surface of the rear pulley 64 from near the front end to near the lower end, and shortly after leaving the outer circumferential surface of the rear pulley 64 comes into contact again near the upper end of the belt pulley 61 .

Further, pins 66 are attached to the belt 65 at predetermined intervals. The pin 66 includes a mounting portion attached to the belt 65 and a protruding portion protruding rightward from the mounting portion. Among these, the protruding part is formed in a cylindrical shape with its central axis oriented in a direction substantially perpendicular to the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43, and its right end (i.e., tip) protrudes to the right side of the disk surface 43S, and is separated. It has reached a position approximately equivalent to the upper surface of the protrusion 44.

In the separation unit housing 40 , the mounting intervals and mounting positions of the pins 66 on the belt 65 are set to match the positions of the pin notches 45 on the inclined disk 43 . Therefore, in the separation unit housing 40, when the belt 65 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the belt pulley 61, the protrusion of the pin 66 enters the pin notch 45 of the inclined disk 43, and the pin 66 is inserted into the pin notch 45. It is located at a location close to the central axis 43C, that is, at a location close to the separation protrusion 44.

When the inclined disk 43 rotates around the central axis 43C, the pin 66 rotates together with the inclined disk 43 and the belt pulley 61 while remaining in the pin notch 45. That is, the pin 66 travels in an arc shape along the rotating orbit in synchronization with the outer peripheral portion of the inclined disk 43. In addition, in the separation unit housing 40, the protruding portion of the pin 66 is passed between the left conveyance guides 53 and 54 in the portion where the belt 65 is stretched from near the rear end of the front pulley 62 to near the front end of the upper pulley 63. . At this time, the pin 66 has the vicinity of its right end protruding to the right side of the conveyance surface FC.

On the other hand, the accumulation cover 41 (FIG. 3) has a lower portion shaped like an arc very close to the outer periphery of the inclined disk 43, and forms a curved surface that moves away from the inclined disk 43 as it moves upward. A coin accumulation space 48 is formed between the inclined disk 43 and the coin accumulation space 48 .

[1-5. Coin feeding by upper separation section]
When coins CN fall from the chute section 14 (FIG. 2), the upper separation section 15 stores the coins CN in the coin accumulation space 48, that is, in the space sandwiched between the inclined disk 43 and the accumulation cover 41. Thereafter, the upper separating section 15 performs a dispensing process of dispensing the coin CN under the control of the coin control section 12, and a conveyance process of conveying the coin CN and handing it over to the subsequent recognition conveyance section 16 (FIG. 2).

Specifically, the upper separating section 15 first rotates the inclined disk 43 in the direction of arrow R1 (ie, clockwise in FIG. 4) by the driving force from the motor 42 (FIG. 3). As a result, the upper separation section 15 appropriately stirs the coins CN accumulated in the coin accumulation space 48 with the separation protrusion 44, and transfers the coins CN to the separation protrusion 44 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7(A). Hang them one by one. At this time, the coin CN has its left side surface in contact with the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43, a rear part of the circumferential surface in contact with the separation protrusion 44, and a lower part in the storage guide. It is brought into contact with the peripheral surface 51S.

Furthermore, by continuing to rotate the inclined disk 43, the upper separating section 15 brings the left side surface of the coin CN into contact with the inclined disk 43, and also brings the circumferential side of the coin CN into contact with the separating protrusion 44 and the storage guide 51. While maintaining the contact state, slide it along the storage guide inner circumferential surface 51S and lift it forward and upward.

Eventually, as shown in FIG. 8A, the upper separating section 15 moves the front end portion of the coin CN to the rear side surface of the front conveyance guide 52, that is, the conveyance reference plane FS. In other words, the separation protrusion 44 applies a force from the rear lower side to the front upper direction of the coin CN, in other words, it supplies a driving force. Thereby, the upper separating section 15 slides the front end of the coin CN onto the conveyance reference surface FS.

The upper separating part 15 continues to rotate the inclined disk 43, and when the belt 65 reaches the vicinity of the front pulley 62, the pin 66 takes over from the separating protrusion 44 and moves the coin CN downward and rearward, as shown in FIG. 8(B). It comes into contact with the coin CN on the side, that is, on the rear side of the center of gravity of the coin CN. In addition, the upper separating section 15 transfers the coin CN from the upstream stacking and separating section 15A to the downstream separating and conveying section 15B, and brings the left side surface of the coin CN into contact with the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43. The state changes from the state where it comes into contact with the right side surfaces of the left conveyance guides 53 and 54, that is, the conveyance surface FC.

Next, the upper separating section 15 causes the belt 65 to run as the inclined disk 43 rotates, thereby gradually separating the pin 66 adjacent to the separating protrusion 44 from the separating protrusion 44 and moving the left conveyance guides 53 and 54. rise along the gap. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 8(C), the upper separating section 15 slides the front end of the coin CN near the transport reference plane FS and slides the left side surface onto the transport surface FC, while moving the coin CN into the transport space SC ( This coin CN can be transported upwards in FIG. 5). Thereafter, the upper separating section 15 further causes the belt 65 to travel, thereby conveying the coin CN in the rearward direction along the upper conveying guide 57 and the like, and then delivers the coin CN to the recognition conveying section 16 (FIG. 2).

Referring to FIG. 6 again, in the inclined disk 43, the separation protrusion 44 is located at a location slightly inward from the outer periphery 43T of the inclined disk 43, and a pin notch is provided on the outer circumference side of the separation protrusion 44. 45 is formed. Since the inclined disk 43 is configured in this way, by positioning the pin 66 in the pin notch 45 in the coin accumulation space 48, coins can be transferred from the accumulation/separation section 15A side to the separation/conveyance section 15B side. When delivering the coin CN (FIG. 8), an operation such as letting out the coin CN while keeping the pin 66 in contact with the lower rear side of the coin CN can be performed.

In fact, in the upper separating section 15, as shown in FIG. 7(A), near the bottom of the coin accumulation space 48, the coin CN tilts the upper part slightly to the left with respect to the vertical direction, and the left board surface is In many cases, the tilted disk 43 is oriented substantially parallel to the disk surface 43S (hereinafter referred to as a separated posture). In this case, the upper separation section 15 can apply force from behind to the coin CN in this separation posture using the separation protrusion 44 or the pin 66 (FIG. 6).

Further, in the upper separating section 15, near the bottom of the coin accumulating space 48, the top of the coin CN is in a non-separated attitude away from the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43, and the bottom of the coin CN is close to the disk surface 43S. (not shown). At this time, in the upper separating section 15, the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S can reach the vicinity of the bottom of the coin accumulation space 48 and come into contact with the vicinity of the lower end of the coin CN, thereby breaking its posture and transitioning to the separating posture.

However, in the upper separation part 15, as shown in FIG. 7(B), the vicinity of the upper end of the coin CN is in a non-separated attitude away from the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43, and the vicinity of the lower end is also slightly separated from the disk surface 43S. If so, there is a possibility that the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S cannot be brought into contact with the vicinity of the lower end of the coin CN. Specifically, if a gap is formed between the lower end of the coin CN and the disk surface 43S of the inclined disk 43, the distance is larger than the height (1.5 mm) of the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S. is applicable.

In this case, in the upper separating section 15, by rotating the inclined disk 43 for a while, the large residual stirring protrusion 46L eventually reaches the vicinity of the bottom of the coin accumulation space 48, as shown in FIG. 7(C). At this time, in the upper separation part 15, since the height of the large residual stirring protrusion 46L is larger than the height of the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S, the large residual stirring protrusion 46L is brought into contact with the coin CN and loses its posture, so that it is not A transition can be made from the separated posture to the separated posture (FIG. 7(A)).

[1-6. Configuration of movement regulating protrusion]
As shown in FIGS. 4 and 9A, the inclined disk 43 has movement regulating protrusions 80 formed at seven locations between the separation protrusions 44 on the disk surface 43S. The movement regulating protrusion 80 includes a rotational direction side movement regulating protrusion 80a and a reverse rotational direction side movement regulating protrusion 80b. Hereinafter, the rotational direction side movement regulating protrusion 80a and the reverse rotational direction side movement regulating protrusion 80b will also be collectively referred to as the movement regulating protrusion 80. The movement regulating protrusion 80 has a conical shape as a whole, and the vicinity of its apex is rounded into a curved shape, and its central axis is directed diagonally upward to the right from the surface of the inclined disk 43, and is aligned along the normal direction of the disk surface 43S. There is. The height of the movement regulating protrusion 80 (that is, the distance from the disk surface 43S to the apex) is 1.5 mm.

The rotation direction side movement regulating protrusion 80a is located slightly in the reverse rotation direction than the separation protrusion 44 on the rotation direction side with respect to the rotation direction, and is located approximately at the longitudinal center of the separation protrusion 44 on the rotation direction side with respect to the radial direction. .

The movement regulating protrusion 80b on the reverse rotation direction side is located at the innermost peripheral portion of the inclined disc 43 at the separation protrusion 44 on the reverse rotation direction side in the radial direction, which is slightly on the rotation direction side of the separation protrusion 44 on the reverse rotation direction side with respect to the rotation direction. Located nearby. Therefore, the reverse rotation direction side movement regulating protrusion 80b is located closer to the central axis 43C of the inclined disk 43 than the rotational direction side movement regulating protrusion 80a in the radial direction.

[1-7. Composition of coin movable area]
As shown in FIG. 10, the upper separation part 15 includes a separation protrusion 44 on the rotation direction side, a movement restriction protrusion 80a on the rotation direction side, a movement restriction projection 80b on the reverse rotation direction side, and a separation projection 44 on the reverse rotation direction side. , the storage guide inner circumferential surface 51S and the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S are made to protrude more than the thickness of one coin toward the normal direction side than the disk surface 43S. For this reason, the upper separation part 15 includes the separation protrusion 44 on the rotation direction side, the movement restriction protrusion 80a on the rotation direction side, the movement restriction protrusion 80b on the reverse rotation direction side, the separation protrusion 44 on the reverse rotation direction side, and the inner periphery of the storage guide. A coin movable region AR that restricts the coin movement range is formed in a space surrounded by the surface 51S and the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S. In this way, when the coin is located near the bottom of the coin accumulation space 48, it is movable within the coin movable area AR and cannot move outside the coin movable area AR.

The above has described the coin movable area AR including the standard residual stirring protrusion 46S, but the coin movable area AR including the large residual stirring protrusion 46L has the same structure, but the large residual agitating protrusion 46L is more standard. Since the diameter is larger than that of the residual stirring projection 46S, the coin movable region AR including the large residual stirring projection 46L is slightly narrower than the coin movable region AR including the standard residual stirring projection 46S.

[1-8. Configuration of coin remaining detection sensor]
As shown in FIG. 3(A), the upper separating section 15 is provided with a coin remaining detection sensor 70 that detects the presence or absence of coins remaining in the coin accumulation space 48. The coin remaining detection sensor 70 is an optical sensor, and includes a light emitting section 70e, a light receiving section 70r, and a prism 70p.

The light emitting unit 70e is attached to the separation unit housing 40 on the left side of the inclined disk 43, and emits detection light diagonally upward to the right toward the coin accumulation space 48 along the sensor optical axis Lx. The prism 70p is attached to the collecting cover 41 on the right side of the inclined disk 43, and bends the traveling direction of the detection light emitted from the light emitting part 70e by 90 degrees upward diagonally to the left so that it is parallel to the inclined disk 43. After the detection light travels as shown in FIG. The light receiving section 70r is attached to the separating section housing 40 on the left side of the inclined disk 43 and diagonally above and to the left of the light emitting section 70e, and receives the detection light reflected by the prism 70p.

The coin remaining detection sensor 70 notifies the coin control unit 12 (FIG. 2) of the result of receiving the detection light. The coin control unit 12 determines whether or not there are coins remaining in the coin accumulation space 48 based on the light reception result. Specifically, the coin remaining detection sensor 70 detects that when a coin located in the coin accumulation space 48, particularly near the lower end, crosses the detection light of the coin remaining detection sensor 70, the detection light is blocked by the coin and the detection light is not received. The coin control unit 12 is notified of the light reception result indicating that there is no light (ie, ON state). On the other hand, if the coin does not cross the detection light of the coin remaining detection sensor 70, the coin remaining detection sensor 70 notifies the coin control unit 12 of a light reception result indicating that the detection light is being received (that is, an OFF state). .

[1-9. Configuration of outer passage notch]
As shown in FIG. 4, the inclined disk 43 has outer passing notches 71 formed at seven locations between the seven pin notches 45 on the outer periphery. This outer passage notch 71 is constituted by a hole surrounding notch 74 and an outer light passage hole 72o. In this way, seven outer passage notches 71 are provided, the same number as the pin notches 45 and separation protrusions 44.

[1-9-1. Configuration of the notch around the hole]
As shown in FIGS. 9 and 11, the hole-periphery notch 74 is formed in the front disk portion 78, and is cut out from the outer periphery 43T toward the center (center axis 43C). This hole surrounding notch 74 is almost similar in shape to the pin notch 45, and has a chevron-like shape similar to a triangle whose side is the outer periphery 43T of the inclined disk 43 when viewed from the right. It is smaller than the notch 45.

Although the hole circumference notch 74 is configured almost axisymmetrically about the radius line Lr, which is a straight line passing through the center axis 43C and passing through the center of the outer light passage hole 72o along the radial direction of the inclined disk 43, the outer circumference The opening on the 43T side is opened larger on the reverse rotation direction side than on the rotation direction side so that the mountain-shaped slope is flattened. That is, the opening width of the hole circumference notch 74 is wider on the reverse rotation direction side than on the rotation direction side in the opening on the outer periphery 43T side with the radius line Lr as an axis. It has become. As a result, the upper separation part 15 prevents foreign objects such as clips from entering the hole surrounding notch 74 when the inclined disk 43 is rotated in the rotation direction, and if it does, it removes foreign objects from the hole surrounding notch 74. Makes it easier to drain.

[1-9-2. Configuration of outer light passage hole]
The outer light passing hole 72o has a circular shape and is formed in the back side disk portion 76, and is formed on the rotation direction side, the reverse rotation direction side, and the central axis 43C side of the inclined disk 43 on the inside of the hole surrounding notch 74. It is located approximately at the center inside the hole surrounding notch 74 so as to be surrounded by the surrounding notch 74 . This outer light passage hole 72o is formed so as to penetrate from the right side to the left side of the back side disc part 76, and is used to pass detection light emitted from the light emitting part 70e of the coin remaining detection sensor 70 (FIG. 3). is passed from the left side of the inclined disk 43 to the disk surface 43S side.

[1-10. Configuration of inner light passage hole]
Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the inclined disk 43 has an inclined surface at seven locations between the seven separation protrusions 44 among the locations where the distance along the radial direction from the central axis 43C is approximately equal to the separation protrusions 44. An inner light passage hole 72i is formed so as to penetrate the disk 43 from the disk surface 43S to the left side surface. In this way, seven inner light passing holes 72i are provided, the same number as the outer light passing holes 72o, the pin notches 45, and the separation protrusions 44. This inner light passing hole 72i passes through both the back side disk part 76 and the front side disk part 78, and passes the detection light reflected by the prism 70p of the coin remaining detection sensor 70 (FIG. 3) to the circle of the inclined disk 43. It passes from the board surface 43S side to the left side.

As shown in FIG. 12, the inner light passage hole 72i is shaped like a capital letter "D" when viewed from the right. Specifically, the inner light passage hole 72i has a shape in which the side closer to the central axis 43C of the inclined disk 43 is cut in a straight line than the center of the circular shape. In this way, the outer shape of the inner light passage hole 72i consists of a circular arc portion 72ia, which is a part of the circular portion 72ic indicated by a dashed line, and a straight line portion 72il, which is a straight line connecting one end side and the other end side of the circular arc portion 72ia. It is made up of.

The diameter of the inner light passage hole 72i, that is, the diameter of the circular portion 72ic, is larger than the outer light passage hole 72o. Hereinafter, the area closer to the central axis 43C of the inclined disk 43 than the straight line part 72il, out of the area inside the circular part 72ic that overlaps the arcuate part 72ia in the inner light passage hole 72i, is also referred to as the light blocking area 72im. In other words, it can be said that the inner light passage hole 72i blocks the light blocking region 72im of the optical path of the circular portion 72ic through which the detection light passes.

[1-11. Arrangement and size of outer light passing hole and inner light passing hole]
As shown in FIG. 10, the above-mentioned outer light passage hole 72o allows the smallest diameter coin CNi to be located at any location on the storage guide inner circumferential surface 51S, which is the bottom of the coin accumulation space 48 within the coin movable area AR. The arrangement and size are set such that the outer light passage hole 72o is blocked by the smallest diameter coin CNi even if the outer light passing hole 72o is closed.

Therefore, the outer light passage hole 72o is located at any location on the storage guide inner circumferential surface 51S, which is the bottom of the coin accumulation space 48 in the coin movable region AR, for the largest diameter coin CNa whose diameter is larger than the smallest diameter coin CNi. The arrangement and size are set such that even if the outer light passage hole 72o is located, the outer light passage hole 72o is blocked by the largest diameter coin CNa.

In addition, the inner light passing hole 72i allows the smallest diameter coin CNi in the coin movable area AR to stick to the disk surface 43S due to moisture etc., overcome the centrifugal force of the inclined disk 43, and cause the inclined disk 43 to be closer to the inner circumferential surface 51S of the storage guide. The arrangement and size are set such that the inner light passage hole 72i is blocked by the coin when the coin remains on the central axis 43C side, that is, above the storage guide inner circumferential surface 51S.

In this way, the outer light passage hole 72o and the inner light passage hole 72i are at least the outer light passage hole 72o or The arrangement and size are set such that either one of the inner light passage holes 72i is blocked by the smallest diameter coin CNi.

For this reason, the outer light passage hole 72o and the inner light passage hole 72i are arranged so that even if the largest diameter coin CNa, which has a larger diameter than the smallest diameter coin CNi, is located anywhere within the coin movable area AR, The arrangement and size are set such that at least either the outer light passage hole 72o or the inner light passage hole 72i is blocked by the largest diameter coin CNa.

[1-12. Effects, etc.]
Here, as shown in FIG. 9(B), in the back side disk part 76, instead of the outer light passage hole 72o, a back side disk part is provided with a notch having the same shape and size as the hole surrounding notch part 74. It is also conceivable to form a notch 82.

In that case, even though coins remain in the coin accumulation space 48, the back side disc cutout 82 and the hole surrounding notch 74 are not covered by the coins and are left wide open, so that the detection light is not sufficiently blocked. As a result, the coin remaining detection sensor 70 is likely to notify the coin control unit 12 of a light reception result indicating that it is receiving detection light (that is, an OFF state). In that case, there is a high possibility that the coin control unit 12 will erroneously determine that no coins remain in the coin accumulation space 48 based on the light reception result.

On the other hand, by making both the back side disk part notch 82 and the hole surrounding notch 74 have the same circular shape as the outer light passage hole 72o, the coins remaining in the coin accumulation space 48 can be removed from the back side disk part notch 82. It is also conceivable to block the detection light passing through the hole surrounding notch 74, that is, to sufficiently cover the back side disk portion notch 82 and the hole surrounding notch 74 with a coin. However, in such a case, foreign matter tends to get caught in the circular notch 74 around the hole.

On the other hand, the upper separation part 15 includes a chevron-shaped hole surrounding notch 74 in which the outer periphery 43T of the inclined disc 43 opens, which is formed on the disc surface 43S of the front disc part 78 that comes into direct contact with coins and foreign objects. A circular outer light passage hole 72o formed to be located inside the hole-periphery notch 74 of the front side disk part 78 is provided in the back side disc part 76 which is unlikely to come into direct contact with foreign matter. For this reason, the upper separating part 15 prevents foreign matter from being caught by making the hole surrounding notch 74 in a chevron shape, and by making the outer light passing hole 72o into a circular shape smaller than the hole surrounding notch 74, it is possible to prevent coins from being caught. This makes it easier to close the outer light passage hole 72o. As a result, the upper separating section 15 prevents foreign objects from being caught, and makes it easier to close the outer light passage hole 72o with coins, thereby improving the performance of detecting the presence or absence of coins remaining in the coin accumulation space 48.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 13B, instead of the inner light passage hole 72i, it is also possible to form a circular portion 72ic and a circular inner light passage hole 172i.

In such a case, the coin CN may stick to the disc surface 43S and be located at a location that blocks approximately the lower half of the inner light passage hole 172i. In such a case, even though the coin CN remains in the coin accumulation space 48, about the upper half of the inner light passage hole 172i is not blocked by the coin CN and becomes wide open, preventing the detection light from being sufficiently transmitted. Since the light cannot be blocked, the coin remaining detection sensor 70 is likely to notify the coin control unit 12 of a light reception result indicating that it is receiving the detection light (that is, an OFF state). In that case, there is a high possibility that the coin control unit 12 will erroneously determine that no coins remain in the coin accumulation space 48 based on the light reception result.

On the other hand, by downsizing the inner light passage hole 172i while maintaining its circular shape, the coins CN remaining in the coin accumulation space 48 block the detection light passing through the inner light passage hole 172i, that is, the size is reduced. It is also conceivable to sufficiently block the inner light passage hole 172i with the coin CN.

However, in such a case, since the inner light passage hole 172i is downsized, the amount of detection light that can pass through the inner light passage hole 172i is reduced. In that case, even though no coin CN remains in the coin accumulation space 48, the amount of detection light received by the light receiving section 70r decreases, so the coin remaining detection sensor 70 detects that the coin CN blocks the detection light. Even if the detection light is not detected, the coin control unit 12 is likely to be notified of a light reception result (that is, an ON state) indicating that the detection light is not received because the detection light is blocked by the coin CN. In that case, there is an increased possibility that the coin control unit 12 will erroneously determine that the coin CN remains in the coin accumulation space 48 based on the light reception result.

On the other hand, by increasing the current flowing through the coin remaining detection sensor 70 and increasing the light receiving sensitivity of the light receiving section 70r, it is possible to prevent the coin CN from remaining in the coin accumulation space 48 even though no coin CN remains there. It is also possible to prevent false detection.

However, when the light receiving sensitivity of the light receiving section 70r is increased, even when the coin CN blocks the detection light, the coin remaining detection sensor 70 detects that the detection light is not sufficiently blocked by the coin CN and detects the detection light. It becomes easy to notify the coin control unit 12 of a light reception result indicating that light is being received (that is, an OFF state). In that case, there is a high possibility that the coin control unit 12 will erroneously determine that no coins remain in the coin accumulation space 48 based on the light reception result. Furthermore, if the current flowing through the coin remaining detection sensor 70 is increased in order to increase the light receiving sensitivity of the light receiving section 70r, the circuit of the coin remaining detection sensor 70 will be easily damaged.

On the other hand, the upper separation part 15 has a light-blocking area 72im where the possibility that the coin CN will move is extremely low even if the coin CN sticks to the disk surface 43S when the coin CN is hooked on the separation protrusion 44. (FIG. 12), the inner light passage hole 72i was shaped like a capital letter "D". For this reason, the upper separation part 15 secures a sufficient amount of detection light passing through the inner light passage hole 72i, while blocking the light blocking area 72im where there is a very low possibility that a coin will be located in the coin accumulation space. The inner light passage hole 72i can be easily closed by the coin CN remaining in the inner light passage hole 72i. Thereby, the upper separator 15 can improve the performance of detecting the presence or absence of coins CN remaining in the coin accumulation space 48.

According to the above configuration, the upper separating section 15 of the coin processing device 10 of the automatic teller machine 1 includes a stacking/separating section 15A that stacks coins, separates the coins one by one, and dispenses them, and a stacking/separating section 15A. The stacking and separating section 15A has a disk surface 43S whose normal line is inclined upward with respect to the horizontal direction, and a central axis 43C of the disk surface 43S. between an inclined disk 43 that is rotatably supported around the center of rotation and rotates in the direction of arrow R1, which is a predetermined rotation direction; an accumulation cover 41 forming a coin accumulation space 48 for accumulating coins; a hole surrounding notch 74 formed by cutting out a portion of the outer periphery 43T of the disk surface 43S toward the central axis 43C; An outer light passage hole 72o is provided inside, penetrates the inclined disk 43, and allows the detection light of a coin remaining detection sensor 70 as a sensor for detecting the presence or absence of coins remaining in the coin accumulation space 48 to pass therethrough. did.

As a result, the upper separation part 15 prevents foreign objects from being caught by the hole surrounding notch 74, while making it easier to block the outer light passage hole 72o, which is formed smaller than the hole surrounding notch 74, with coins, thereby improving the coin detection performance. can be improved.

[2. Other embodiments]
In the above-described embodiment, a case has been described in which the hole surrounding notch 74 is formed into a chevron-shaped shape similar to a triangle whose one side is the outer periphery 43T of the inclined disk 43. The present invention is not limited to this, and the hole surrounding notch 74 may have a shape such that the opening width becomes wider from the inner circumference side of the inclined disk 43 toward the outer circumference 43T side. In short, the hole surrounding notch 74 may have a shape in which the opening width is wider at the end on the outer periphery 43T side than at the inner periphery side end of the inclined disk 43.

Further, in the embodiment described above, the hole circumference notch 74 is made larger so that the reverse rotation direction side of the opening on the outer periphery 43T side lies flat than the rotation direction side of the opening on the outer periphery 43T side, with the radius line Lr as an axis. The case where it is opened has been described. The present invention is not limited to this, and the hole surrounding notch 74 may be configured to be symmetrical about the radius line Lr as long as foreign matter is not caught in the hole surrounding notch 74.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the case where the outer light passage hole 72o is circular is described. The present invention is not limited to this, but may be a polygonal shape close to a circle with chamfered corners to prevent coins from getting caught.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the oblique disk 43 is provided with the front side disk part 78 and the back side disk part 76, and the front side disk part 78 is formed with the hole-periphery notch 74, and the back side disk part 76 is formed with the outer light passage hole 72o. I mentioned the case where The present invention is not limited to this, and the front side disc part 78 and the back side disc part 76 may be integrated, and the hole surrounding notch 74 and the outer light passage hole 72o may be formed in the integrated member.

Further, in the embodiment described above, a case has been described in which the inner light passage hole 72i is shaped like a capital letter "D". The present invention is not limited to this, but may be a polygonal shape that is close to a circular shape with chamfered corners to prevent coins from getting caught, and the central axis 43C side is shaved to block a part of the optical path of the polygonal shape. For example, various other shapes may be used.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, a case has been described in which the outer light passage holes 72o are provided at seven locations approximately equally spaced along the circumferential direction of the inclined disk 43 (FIG. 4). The present invention is not limited to this, and the outer light passing holes 72o may be provided at six or less or eight or more locations along the circumferential direction of the inclined disk 43 as long as the coin detection performance can be ensured. Further, the intervals between the outer light passing holes 72o along the circumferential direction of the inclined disk 43 may not be equal to each other.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, a case has been described in which the inner light passage holes 72i are provided at seven locations approximately equally spaced along the circumferential direction of the inclined disk 43 (FIG. 4). The present invention is not limited to this, and the inner light passage holes 72i may be provided at six or less or eight or more locations along the circumferential direction of the inclined disk 43 as long as the coin detection performance can be ensured. Furthermore, the intervals between the inner light passing holes 72i along the circumferential direction of the inclined disk 43 may not be equal to each other.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, a case has been described in which the outer light passage holes 72o and the inner light passage holes 72i are provided in the same number as the separation protrusions 44, the pin notches 45, and the residual stirring protrusions 46 (FIG. 4). The present invention is not limited to this, and the number of outer light passage holes 72o and inner light passage holes 72i may be provided in a number different from the number of separation protrusions 44, pin notches 45, and residual stirring protrusions 46.

Furthermore, in the embodiments described above, the case where the present invention is applied to the upper separating section 15 has been described. The present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to the lower separating section 29, for example.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the case where the present invention is applied to the coin processing device 10 incorporated in the automatic teller machine 1 as an automatic transaction device has been described. The present invention is applicable not only to the automatic teller machine 1 as the automatic transaction device, but also to various devices such as automatic ticket vending machines that conduct transactions regarding coins with customers, employees of financial institutions, and clerks of retail stores. The present invention may be applied to a cash management device used by a bank, etc. to manage cash, a change machine that dispenses change, and the like.

Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and other embodiments. In other words, the scope of application of the present invention extends to embodiments in which each of the above-mentioned embodiments and a part or all of the other embodiments described above are arbitrarily combined, and embodiments in which a part is extracted. It is.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, a case has been described in which the coin processing device 10 as a coin processing device is configured by the stacking/separating section 15A as the stacking/separating section and the separating/transporting section 15B as the transporting section. Furthermore, an accumulation/separation section is formed by an inclined disk 43 as an inclined disk, an accumulation cover 41 as an accumulation cover, a hole circumference notch 74 as a hole circumference notch, and an outer light passage hole 72o as an outer light passage hole. The case of configuring is described above. The present invention is not limited to this, and a coin processing device is configured by an accumulation/separation section having various other configurations and a conveyance section, and an inclined disk having various other configurations, an accumulation cover, a notch around the hole, An integration/separation section may be formed by the outer light passage hole.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION This invention can be utilized, for example in the automatic teller machine etc. which perform transaction processing regarding a coin with a customer or a clerk.

1...Automated teller machine, 2...Casing, 3...Reception department, 4...Passbook entry/exit, 5...Card entry/exit, 6...Coin entry/exit, 7...Banknote entry/exit, 8...Operation display section, 9...Main control section, 10...Coin processing device, 11...Coin processing device housing, 12...Coin control section, 13...Deposit/withdrawal section, 13A...Accommodator, 13B...Shutter, 14...Chute section, 15...Upper separation section, 15A...Collection separation section, 15B...Separation conveyance section, 16...Recognition conveyance section, 17...Delivery section, 18...Pin belt conveyance Department, 19... branching section, 20... stacker branching section, 21... stacker section, 22... dispensing conveyance section, 23... temporary holding section, 24... replenishment collection warehouse, 25... first replenishment reject Warehouse, 26...Second replenishment reject warehouse, 27...Reject warehouse, 28...Lower separation section, 29A...Accumulation separation section, 29B...Separation conveyance section, 30, 31 ...Guiding part, 32... Accumulating part, 33... Feeding part, 40... Separating part housing, 41... Accumulating cover, 43... Inclined disc, 43C... Central axis, 43S... Disc surface, 43T ...Outer circumference, 44...Separation projection, 45...Notch for pin, 46...Residual stirring projection, 46S...Standard residual stirring projection, 46L...Large residual stirring projection, 48...Coin accumulation space, 50... ... Coin guide, 51 ... Storage guide, 51S ... Storage guide inner circumferential surface, 52 ... Front transport guide, 53, 54 ... Left transport guide, 65 ... Belt, 66 ... Pin, 70 ... Coin remaining Detection sensor, 70e... Light emitting part, 70r... Light receiving part, 70p... Prism, Lx... Sensor optical axis, 71... Outer passage notch, 72o... Outer light passing hole, 72i, 172i... Inner light Passing hole, 72im...light-blocking area, 72ic...circular part, 72ia...arc part, 72il...straight line part, 74...hole circumference notch, 76...back side disc part, 78...front side disc part , 80a...Movement regulating protrusion on the rotational direction side, 80b...Movement regulating protrusion on the reverse rotational direction, 82...Reverse side disc section notch, AR...Coin movable area, CN...Coin, CNa...Maximum diameter coin , CNi...Minimum diameter coin, Lr...Radius line, SC...Transportation space.

Claims (14)

a stacking and separating unit that stacks coins and separates and feeds out the coins one by one;
a conveyance section that conveys the coins fed out from the accumulation separation section;
The integration separation section is
an inclined disk having a disk surface whose normal line is inclined upward with respect to the horizontal direction, rotatably supported around a central axis of the disk surface as a rotation center, and rotating in a predetermined rotation direction;
an accumulation cover that is provided on the normal side of the disk surface of the inclined disk and forms a coin accumulation space between which the coins are accumulated;
a hole-periphery notch formed by cutting a portion of the outer periphery of the disk surface toward the central axis;
an outer light passage hole that is provided inside the hole-surrounding notch, passes through the inclined disk, and allows detection light from a sensor that detects whether or not the coins remain in the coin accumulation space to pass therethrough ;
a separation protrusion that is provided at a position away from the outer periphery of the disk surface toward the central axis, projects from the disk surface in the normal direction, and rotates together with the inclined disk to abut and convey the coin;
A coin handling device equipped with The coin processing according to claim 1, wherein the hole-periphery notch has a shape in which the opening width along the rotation direction is wider at the outer peripheral end of the inclined disk than at the inner peripheral end. Device. The coin processing device according to claim 2, wherein the hole surrounding notch has a shape in which the opening width becomes wider from an end on the inner peripheral side of the inclined disk toward an end on the outer peripheral side. The coin processing device according to claim 3, wherein the hole surrounding notch has a substantially triangular shape with one side being the outer periphery of the disk surface. The opening width of the opening around the hole is larger in the opposite rotation direction than in the rotation direction of the opening on the outer peripheral side, with the straight line passing through the center axis and the center of the outer light passage hole as an axis. The coin processing device according to claim 4, wherein the coin processing device is wide. The coin processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the outer light passage hole has a circular shape. The inclined disk has a front side disk part on which the disk surface is formed, and a back side disk part provided on the opposite side of the disk surface with respect to the front side disk part,
The hole circumference notch is formed in the front disk portion,
The coin processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the outer light passage hole is formed in the back side disk portion. Claim further comprising: an inner light passage hole provided on the disk surface at a position farther from the outer periphery toward the center axis than the outer light passage hole, penetrates the inclined disk, and allows the detection light to pass through. The coin processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7. The coin processing device according to claim 8, wherein the inner light passage hole has a circular shape with the central axis side cut off. The coin processing device according to claim 9, wherein the inner light passage hole has a D-shape in which the central axis side is a straight line. a stirring protrusion provided near the outer periphery of the disk surface and protruding from the disk surface in the normal direction;
a movement regulating protrusion provided on the disk surface at a position farther from the outer periphery toward the center axis than the outer light passage hole, and protruding from the disk surface in the normal direction;
further comprising a peripheral wall portion along the outside of the outer periphery of the disk surface,
A range in which the coin can move is placed in a region surrounded by the separation protrusion on the rotation direction side, the separation protrusion on the reverse rotation direction side, the stirring protrusion, the movement regulating protrusion, and the peripheral wall part. A certain coin movable area is formed,
The outer light passing hole and the inner light passing hole are arranged so that when the smallest diameter coin handled by the coin processing device is located within the coin movable area, the outer light passing hole or the inner light passing hole The coin processing device according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein at least a portion of one of the passage holes is closed. The coin processing device according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the outer light passing hole and the inner light passing hole are provided in the same number. The coin processing device according to claim 12, wherein the outer light passing hole and the inner light passing hole are provided in the same number as the separation protrusion. an operation section that accepts user operations;
An automatic transaction device comprising: the coin processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

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