JPH03251975A - Card processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To increase the lifetime of a light emitting element by actuating the light emitting element of a photosensor kept in a card transfer path only when a detector detects that a card is out into a card processor. CONSTITUTION:When a card insertion detector 7 detects that no card exists between a light emitting element A and a light receiving element (a), the photodetecting signal of the element (a) is inputted to a control circuit 8. In the circuit 8, the level of the photodetecting signal is inverted and the base of a transistor TR of a power circuit 9 is set at H. Then the TR does not conduct and the light emitting elements B-D are not energized nor actuated. When a card is put between both elements A and (a), the light emitted from the element A is cut and the element (a) is turned off. As a result, the potential rises up between the element (a) and a resistance Rl so that the insertion of the card is detected. This detecting signal is inputted to the circuit 8, and the level of this detecting signal is inverted and the base of the TR is set at L. Then the TR conducts and the elements B-D emit the light respectively.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Summary] Regarding a card processing device that records/reproduces information on a magnetic card such as a cash card, credit card, prepaid card, etc., the length of a light emitting element used as a photosensor for card position detection is disclosed. With the aim of extending the service life of the magnetic card, information can be recorded/reproduced in the magnetic recording section of the magnetic card by transferring the magnetic card to a card transport path equipped with a photosensor for detecting the position of the magnetic card. In the card processing device to be used, a sensor for detecting card insertion is provided in the card insertion slot, and the card insertion detector is connected to the power supply circuit of the light emitting element of the photo sensor for detecting the card position via a control circuit. By doing so, the circuit is configured so that the detection signal of the card insertion detector is manually input to the control section of the power supply circuit of the light emitting element for the photosensor, and the light emitted inside the transport path is activated only after the card is inserted into the card insertion slot. The device is configured to be energized.

[Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to a card processing device for recording/reproducing information on magnetic cards such as cash cards, credit cards, prepaid cards, and the like.

[Conventional technology]

FIG. 5 is a side view and a plan view of a conveyance path showing a read/write section in a conventional card processing device.

1 is a magnetic card (hereinafter abbreviated as "card"), which has a long magnetic stripe M in the running direction of the card. 2
is a transport path for this card 1, and includes rollers 3 that rotate with the card 1 in between.

Furthermore, guides 4.5 are fixedly installed on both sides of the conveyance path 2 to guide the card 1 in a constant direction. and,
In the transport path 2, a magnetic head H is fixed at a position where the magnetic stripe M passes when the card 1 runs.

Now, when the card 1 is inserted into the conveyance path 2, the card 1 is conveyed toward the back of the conveyance path 2 by the rotation of the rollers 3 on the entrance side. Then, during transportation, when the magnetic stripe M passes in contact with the magnetic head H, information is recorded or reproduced on the magnetic stripe M.

When the recording and reproduction of magnetic information is completed, the rollers 3 are reversely rotated, and the card 1 is ejected into the card insertion slot 6.

In the conveyance path 2, light emitting elements A to D are arranged on the lower side and light receiving elements a% d are arranged on the upper side with the passing position of the card 1 in between. Elements a - d
The two face each other and form a pair, thereby forming a photosensor.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing details of a photosensor consisting of a light emitting element and a light receiving element. Light emitting diodes and the like are used as the light emitting elements A to D, and phototransistors and the like are used as the light receiving elements a to d. Therefore, when a card arrives between the light-emitting elements A-D and the light-receiving elements a-d, the light-receiving elements a-d are turned off, and the presence of the card 1 can be detected. When no card is present, the light receiving elements a to d receive light from the light emitting elements A to D and are turned on. Note that although a transmissive photosensor is illustrated, a reflective photosensor may also be used.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Card processing devices use a large number of photosensors, although they vary depending on the model. Since the light emitting diode of each photosensor is constantly energized,
Due to heat generation, the collimating lens section and the package section made of resin deteriorate, and lattice defects in the element itself move, causing the amount of light emission to gradually decrease and the operating margin to decrease.

In particular, as various cards have become more popular in recent years, the number of card processing devices used outdoors is also increasing. also deteriorates quickly.

Moreover, such a decrease in light emission varies among elements, so if even one of the many light emitting diodes becomes unusable due to a decrease in light emission, the device must be shut down and replaced with a good one. , the maintenance burden is large. Furthermore, during this time, the device cannot be used, which causes inconvenience to the user.

A technical object of the present invention is to address such problems and to extend the life of a light emitting element used as a photosensor for card position detection.

[Means to solve the problem]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the basic principle of a card processing device according to the present invention. 3 are rollers for conveying cards, and the conveyance path 2 is provided with a photosensor for detecting the leading edge and trailing edge of the conveyed card. In the figure, a photosensor is constructed by arranging a light emitting element B-D and a light receiving element b-d to face each other with a card passage section in between.

A sensor 7 is provided in the card insertion slot 6 to detect that a card has been inserted. The card insertion detector 7 is connected via a control section 8 to a power supply circuit 9 for the light emitting elements B to D of the card position detection photosensor.

[Function] When no card is inserted into the card insertion slot 6 of the card processing device, the card insertion detector 7 detects that no card is inserted, and the detection signal is sent to the control unit 8. By inputting the signal, the power supply circuit 9 is turned off, and power is not supplied to the light emitting elements BD. the result,
The photosensor consisting of the light emitting elements B to D and the light receiving elements a to d will not function.

Now, when the card 1 is inserted into the card insertion slot 6 as shown in the figure, the card insertion detector 7 detects that the card has been inserted, and a card detection signal is input to the control section 8. As a result, the control unit 8 controls the power supply circuit 9 to turn on, and the light emitting elements B-D are energized and emit light. With this, for the first time, the light emitting elements B-D and the light receiving elements a-d
The photo sensor consisting of the card functions and becomes able to detect the card position.

In this way, after the light-emitting elements B-D emit light, the card is fed into the conveyance path 2 by the feed roller 3, and the card position is detected by each light-receiving element a-d, and information is recorded/reproduced. will be carried out.

Normally, once a card is inserted, the power is controlled by the control unit 8 so that the light emitting elements B-D are maintained in an energized state until the card is ejected from the card insertion slot 6.

When the recording/playback process is completed and the card 1 is ejected into the card insertion slot 6 and separated from the card insertion detector 7, a card ejection signal is inputted to the control unit 8 by the detector 7, and the light emitting element is activated. The power supply circuits 9 B to D are turned off.

Therefore, the light-emitting elements B-D are energized and emit light for the first time when a card is inserted into the card processing device, and when the card is ejected, the power is turned off and they stop emitting light, so they do not emit light continuously as in the past. Compared to conventional devices, each light emitting element can have a longer lifespan. FIG. 4 is a diagram comparing the decrease in the amount of light emitted by the light emitting element between the conventional device and the device of the present invention. In a conventional light emitting element that is continuously energized, the amount of light emitted decreases rapidly over time, whereas in the light emitting element that is controlled on and off according to the present invention, the amount of light emitted decreases very little.

(Example) Next, how the card processing device according to the present invention is actually implemented will be explained using an example.
Although a mechanical detection sensor is illustrated as the card insertion detector 7, similar to the photo sensor inside the conveyance path 2,
A detector consisting of a light emitting element and a light receiving element may also be used.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an on/off control circuit for light emitting elements B-D, and shows an example in which a photosensor is used as the card insertion detector 7. In this embodiment, the card insertion detector 7 inserts a light emitting element A such as a light emitting diode and a light receiving element A such as a phototransistor into the card insertion slot 6 so that the card 1 is sandwiched therebetween as shown in FIG. 5(a). The configuration is such that they are placed facing each other. A control circuit 8 is connected between the light receiving element a and the current limiting resistor R1.

The light emitting elements BD are connected in parallel and are connected to the collector side of the switching transistor Tr via a current limiting resistor. The aforementioned control circuit 8 is connected to the base side of this transistor Tr.

Now, as shown in the figure, if there is no card between the light emitting element A and the light receiving element a in the card insertion detector 7, the light receiving element a receives the light generated from the light emitting element A, and the light receiving element a becomes conductive, and the potential increases. By decreasing the value, it can be detected that the card is not inserted, and a detection signal is input to the control circuit 8.

When this detection signal is input, its level is inverted in the control circuit 8, and the base of the transistor Tr of the power supply circuit 9 becomes H level, so that the transistor Tr cannot conduct. As a result, each light emitting element BD is not energized and cannot emit light.

Now, when a card is inserted between the light emitting element A and the light receiving element a, the light generated from the light emitting element A is blocked by the card 1, and the light receiving element a is turned off. As a result, the potential between the light-receiving element a and the resistor R1 becomes high, so that insertion of the card can be detected, and a detection signal is input to the control circuit 8.

When this card detection signal is input, the level is inverted in the control circuit 8, the base of the transistor Tr of the power supply circuit 9 becomes L level, the transistor Tr becomes conductive, and each light emitting element B-D is energized. Emits light.

When the inserted card is drawn into the card transport path and passes through the card insertion detector 7, even though the card is in the card processing device, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 3(a), the card is inserted. The detector 7 may become conductive and turn off each light emitting element BD. In order to avoid this, once the card is inserted and the card insertion detector 7 is turned off, after the card is drawn into the transport path 2,
Next, the control circuit has a function of keeping the light emitting elements B-D continuously energized as shown in FIG. 3 until the card insertion detector 7 is turned off again in the card. 8 can be held. By adding such a holding function using microcomputer control or the like, the card insertion detector 7 can be controlled as if it were detecting the card insertion state, as shown by the broken line. Then, during the time t from card insertion to card ejection, the internal light emitting elements B to D continuously emit light, thereby performing processing such as recording/reproducing magnetic information.

In FIG. 2, a photosensor is illustrated as the card insertion detector 7, but as shown in FIG. 1, if a mechanical sensor such as a limit switch is used as the card insertion detector 7, the card When the card is ejected from the conveyance path, the card is mechanically held down, thereby preventing the card from falling off. Further, when a photosensor is used, the light emitting element A thereof deteriorates and the frequency of replacement increases, but if a mechanical detector is used, there is less problem of deterioration and the frequency of replacement is reduced.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, only when the card insertion detector 7 detects that a card is inserted into the card processing device, the light emitting elements B-D of the photosensor inside the card transport path are energized and emit light. is configured to do so.

Therefore, compared to conventional light-emitting elements that are continuously energized, the life of the light-emitting elements is significantly longer, reducing the workload of replacing light-emitting elements whose luminous output has decreased, and eliminating the need for equipment to temporarily stop for repairs. This is also convenient for the user since the frequency is also reduced. Moreover, power consumption can also be reduced.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram explaining the basic principle of the card processing device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the electric circuit of the card processing device according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a time chart showing the operation of the electric circuit. , FIG. 4 is a diagram comparing the reduction in the amount of light emitted by the light emitting diode in the conventional card processing device and the light emitting diode in the card processing device of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a side view showing the card conveyance path in the conventional card processing device. FIG. 6 is a side view showing the configuration of the photosensor. In the figure, 1 is a card (magnetic card), M is a magnetic stripe (magnetic recording section), 2 is a transport path, 3... is a feed roller, 6 is a card insertion slot, 7 is a card insertion detector, 8 is a power supply Control unit, 9 is a power supply circuit, A to D are light emitting elements (light emitting diodes), and a to d are light receiving elements (phototransistors).
are shown respectively.

Claims (1)

[Claims] Card processing in which information is recorded/reproduced in a magnetic recording section of a magnetic card by transferring the magnetic card to a card transport path in which a photosensor for detecting the position of the magnetic card is disposed. In the device, a sensor (7) for detecting card insertion is provided in the card insertion slot (6), and the card insertion detector (7) is connected to the photo sensor for detecting card position via the control circuit (8). Light emitting element (B
~D), the detection signal of the card insertion detector (7) is input to the control unit (8) of the power supply circuit of the photo sensor light emitting element (B~D). A card processing device characterized in that the circuit is configured as follows, and the light emitting elements (B to D) inside the conveyance path are energized only after the card (1) is inserted into the card insertion slot (6). .