JPH04116785A - Information reading method for toll road pass - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To accurately demodulate magnetic recording information against the mixing of the passes by selecting a magnetic recording demodulation means according to the detection result of a mark and reading information magnetically recorded on the magnetic stripe of the pass while demodulating the output signal of a reading head. CONSTITUTION:A bar code identification part 17 inputs the output signal of a sensor 12 for bar code through a signal amplification/waveform forming part 15, and detects the presence or absence of the bar code 12 to supply the detection result to a control part 18. When there is no bar code 12, the control part 18 supplies changeover switches 21 and 22 to either contact (a) side and selects an FM demodulation part 19 of 100 BPI. On the other hand, when there is a bar code 12, the control part 18 supplies the changeover switches 21 and 22 to the other contact (b) side and selects an FM demodulation part 20 of 200 BPI. Thus, even when the passes with different magnetic recording density due to the mixing of the conventional terminal equipment and the new one, the accurate demodulation according to the magnetic recording density can be performed with the aid of the detection of the mark.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] <Industrial Application> The present invention relates to a toll road toll collection system, and in particular, to a toll road toll collection system, in particular, it is possible to correctly collect information even when there is a mixture of tickets with information written in different magnetic recording densities. Regarding how it can be read.

<Conventional technology> Long-distance toll motorways with multiple entrance gates and exit gates have a toll system in which tolls are collected according to the section of use and the number of vehicles used. . Therefore, at the entrance gates of such toll expressways, a pass is issued and handed to the user, with the entrance gate information such as the cover of the car, the date and time of use, or the name of the entrance gate printed and magnetically recorded. A toll collection system is adopted in which a collector collects the pass from the user at the exit gate, reads information magnetically recorded on the pass, and settles the usage fee.

For this reason, terminals are installed at the entrance gates and exit gates of the above-mentioned toll roads, etc., to process cards such as toll passes, prepaid highway cards, and credit cards called separate freight cards. ing.

FIG. 11 shows an example of a magnetic card type pass MC. In the figure, MS is a magnetic stripe, on which magnetic recording is performed using one wide track. In current terminals, the recording density is 100 BPI (pits per inch), and the recording method is the FM method. In addition, at the terminal at the entrance gate, one track is divided into three areas MS in the track length direction to back up the recorded contents.
1. The area is divided into MS 2 and MS 3, and the same entrance gate information is recorded in each area. Then, at the exit gate terminal, after reading the entrance gate information, in addition to this entrance gate information, exit gate information such as fare, departure gate name, date and time is overridden and recorded in one of the areas, and furthermore, these The recorded information is read to confirm whether it was recorded correctly.

<Problem to be solved by the invention> Due to reasons such as the expected use of credit cards to pay fares in the future, the amount of information magnetically recorded on pass tickets will tend to increase, and the current recording method of 100 BPI will not have enough capacity. .

Therefore, it is necessary to increase the recording capacity by increasing the recording density to, for example, 200 BPI, but replacing the terminals at all the gates of the toll road with new models with a larger recording capacity at once is not possible, even if it is temporary. Therefore, it is not practical. Therefore, terminals will be replaced little by little with new models, but in this case, the current magnetic card terminal (hereinafter referred to as
Since there is a mixture of passes with different recording densities from the current model and the new model, there is a need for a method that can correctly demodulate magnetically recorded information for such a mix of passes.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for reading information on toll road passes that meets such demands.

Means for Solving the Problems> The method for reading information on a toll road ticket according to the present invention detects a mark for identifying magnetic recording density formed on the ticket, and operates a magnetic recording demodulating means according to the detection result of the mark. This method is characterized in that information magnetically recorded on the magnetic stripe of the pass ticket is read by selectively demodulating the output signal of the reading head.

Effect> The difference in the magnetic recording density of the ticket corresponds to the presence or absence of a mark or the difference in the mark. Therefore, by using the magnetic recording demodulation means according to the mark detection results, it is possible to correctly demodulate the output signal of the reading head even if there are tickets with different magnetic recording densities.

<Example> The present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 11.

FIG. 1 shows the main parts of a terminal device which detects marks using a barcode sensor 11 as a first embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1α4A is a new type of pass ticket in which information is recorded in the FM method using a new type of machine at a high magnetic recording density of 200 BPI, and a barcode 12 is formed as a mark on the tip of the card. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11, the current 100 BPI pass MC does not have a bar code. Therefore, depending on the presence or absence of the barcode 12, 20
It is possible to identify whether the 08PI new type ticket 104A is the current 100BPI ticket MC. Note that the barcode 12 may be either an optical type or a magnetic type.

The same applies to the barcode sensor 11.

In FIG. 1, inside the terminal, there are a barcode sensor 11 and a reading head 14 along the ticket conveyance path 13, but the sensor 11 is in a position ahead of the others. Furthermore, inside the terminal, there are two signal amplification and waveform shaping sections 15 and 16, a barcode identification section 17, and a control section 18 for 100 BPI (7
)F MiM section 19.20 FM demodulation section 20 for OBPI
．． and two changeover switches 21 and 22. Note that the transport mechanism and the like will be explained later with reference to FIGS. 5 to 10.

The barcode identification section 17 inputs the output signal of the barcode sensor 12 via the signal amplification and waveform shaping section 15, detects the presence or absence of the barcode 12, and provides the result to the control section 18. If there is no barcode 12, the control unit 18 switches the changeover switches 21 and 22 to one contact a side to select the 100 BPI FM demodulation unit 19. The FM demodulator 19 inputs and demodulates the output signal of the reading head 14 via the signal amplification and waveform shaping section 16, and provides the information magnetically recorded on the current pass MC to the control section 18. vice versa,
If there is a barcode 12, the control unit 18 switches the changeover switches 21 and 22 to the other contact side, and
8PI FM demodulator 20 is selected. Therefore, this time F
The M@ modulation section 20 inputs the output signal of the reading head 14 through the signal amplification and waveform shaping section 16, demodulates it, and converts it into a new type of pass 1.
The information magnetically recorded in 04A is given to the control section 18. The control unit 18 performs predetermined processing based on the information on the pass obtained from the FM checking unit 19 or 20, and then records the processed information at a high magnetic recording density, e.g.
It is recorded on the magnetic stripe MS of the pass at 0 BPI, and immediately read out to check whether it has been written correctly.

In this case, it is assumed that the pass ticket is transported in a reciprocating manner within the terminal, and new information is written on the return trip, and for confirmation immediately after that, the reading head 14 is used and the changeover switches 21 and 22 are connected to the side. and 200 BPI FM [1
4 parts 20 are selected.

FIG. 2 shows another example of the mark as a second embodiment.
A hole 23 is formed in a new type of 0BPI pass 104A. Moreover, FIG. 3 shows still another example of the mark as a third embodiment, in which a notch 24 is formed on a new type of 200 BPI pass ticket 104A.
It is formed. In contrast, the current 100 BPI pass MC shown in FIG. 11 has no holes or notches. Therefore, depending on the presence or absence of the hole 23 or notch 24, 2008PI
New type of ticket 104A or current ticket MC of 100BPI
can be identified. When the hole 23 or notch 24 is used as a magnetic recording density identification mark, a well-known sensor such as an optical type is used to replace the barcode sensor 11 or barcode identification part 17 shown in FIG. It is only necessary to detect the presence or absence of the object and provide the detection result to the control section 18.

As shown in FIG. 4 ζ, as a second embodiment of the present invention, the reading head 14
This figure shows the main parts of a terminal that itself is used for mark detection. In the case of this embodiment, there is no difference in appearance (bar code 12, hole 23, notch 24, etc.) between the new type of toll ticket and the current toll ticket, and the information at the beginning of the magnetic recording format of the toll road ticket is must be “OF” (0,0°0.0,1,1,
1, 1) is recorded, and this "OF" part is used as a mark.

In other words, “OF” of the current pass recorded at 100 BPI
If you demodulate the "OF" part at 100 BPI, the first two bits will naturally be (0, 0), but if you demodulate the "OF" part of a new type of pass recorded at 200 BPI at 100 BPI, the first two bits will become (1, 1). ), it is possible to identify the pass ticket.

In FIG. 4, in addition to the reading head 14, signal amplification and waveform shaping section 16, and control section 18, the terminal includes an FM demodulation circuit 25 and its 100 BPI wind clock generation section 2.
There are a wind clock generator 27 for 6 and 200 BPI, a discrimination circuit 28, and a changeover switch 29. Changeover switch 2
9 is controlled by the discrimination circuit 28, but normally one contact a
The wind clock for 100 BPI is supplied to the FMfi adjustment circuit 25. Therefore, the FM demodulation circuit 25 usually includes the signal amplification and waveform shaping section 1.
The output signal of the reading head 14 is input through 6, and the output signal of 100B is input.
It is designed to perform FM demodulation of PI. Then, when the pass ticket is conveyed, the discrimination circuit 28 determines that the first two pits of the "OF" part are (0) from the demodulated output of the FM demodulation circuit 25.
, 0) or (1, -1).
0), it is determined that the current pass is 100BP I, and the changeover switch 29 is left as is.
to operate FMfJl@times FIII25. vice versa,"
If the first 2 bits of the OF'' part are (1, 1), it is 2008.
It is determined that it is a new type of PI ticket, and the changeover switch 29 is turned to the other contact side to send 200B to the FM demodulation circuit 25.
A PI wind clock is applied to operate the FM demodulation circuit 25 at 200 BPI.

The control unit 18 controls the FMt for both current and new types of passes.
After inputting the tX tone output of the X tone circuit 25 and taking in the magnetically recorded information of the pass, predetermined processing is performed based on this information, the processed information is recorded at a high magnetic recording density using a writing head (not shown). For example, in 2008PI, the magnetic stripe M on the pass ticket
The data is recorded in S, and immediately read out to check whether it has been written correctly. In this case as well, it is assumed that the pass ticket is withdrawn by reciprocating within the terminal, new information is written on the return trip, and for confirmation immediately after that, the reading head 14 is used and the L4200BP is placed on the side where the changeover switch 29 is contacted.
The I-c-FMfly4 circuit 25 is operated.

Note that the above-mentioned terminal device can be used for both output gates and entrance gates.

Next, the entire terminal device including the transport mechanism will be explained with reference to FIGS. 5 to 10.

As shown in FIG. 9, the terminal device of the toll road toll collection system has a main body 2 in which a foldable operation display section 1 is rotatably mounted, and a pass entrance/exit 101 is opened for ticket processing. section 100 and entrance/exit 201 for cards other than pass tickets.
A card processing section 200 with an opening and these processing control sections 3 are assembled.

The operation display section 1 is provided with a numeric keypad 4 and a power-on key 5, and is further provided with a display panel 6 for special processing that allows touch input. Operations using the processing buttons displayed on the display panel 6 are in an interactive format that allows necessary processing to be performed naturally. or,
A keyboard (not shown) having five operation buttons for inputting the vehicle type is placed on the top surface of the hopper stacker 102 of the pass ticket processing section 100, which will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 5, which shows a schematic planar structure of the pass ticket processing section 100, and FIG. 6, which shows its cross-sectional shape in the direction of arrows -M, the pass ticket processing section 100 processes passes all at once. It can be used as both a ticket issuing machine and a ticket validating machine, just like conventional machines. Here, it will be explained as a pass ticket confirmation machine at an exit gate.

On the side of the entrance/exit 101 formed at the front end of the housing 103, a new pass 104 is stored to be reissued in case the road user loses it.
Bad ticket 104 and used ticket 1 among 04
A hopper stacker 102 for collecting 04, etc. is detachably attached to the main body 2 and the housing 103, and a handle 105 is formed on both the left and right sides of the hopper stacker 102 for collecting new passes 104. Hoppa stacker 10
A feed-out roller 106 that feeds out the hopper stacker 106 from the hopper stacker 102 and a pull-in roller 107 that pulls the defective ticket 104 among the new tickets 104 and the used ticket 104 into the hopper stacker 102 are rotatable with respect to the housing 103. is attached to. In addition, the hopper stacker 102 has a feed roller 106 and a pull roller 107.
A pair of guide plates 108 and 109 are fixed, each straddling the two. Between these guide plates 108 and 109 is a hopper stacker 105 that is slidable in the opposite direction.
A pair of presser plates 110 and 111 are arranged, and each presser plate 110°111 is attached to a tension spring 112.
are biased in the direction opposite to guide plates 108 and 109, respectively.

Therefore, the new pass 104 inserted between the guide plate 108 and the presser plate 110 is urged toward the feeding roller 106 via the presser plate 110 by the tension spring 112, and the guide plate 109 and the presser plate 110 The used pass ticket 104, etc., sent between the
It is biased toward the 07 side.

Behind the entrance/exit 101 (on the right side in FIG. 5) is a printing pad 1 for printing characters, symbols, etc. on the pass 104.
13, a reading head section 115 for reading magnetic information from a magnetic recording section (not shown) formed on the pass ticket 104, and a write head section 116 for writing new magnetic information on the pass ticket 104. They are arranged in order.

These head portions have the structure of any of the embodiments described above.

A special unit 117 for temporarily holding the ticket 104 is formed at the rearmost end of the ticket processing section 100.

Although this embodiment is described as a pass ticket confirmation machine, when used as a pass ticket issuing machine, the print head 1
13, the print head 113 is configured to be movable in the width direction of the ticket 104 or capable of printing multiple lines.

The transport line for the pass 104 is connected to the pass ticket processing unit 100 so as to connect the special equipment unit 117 and the entrance/exit 101 via the print head 113, reading head unit 115, and writing head unit 116.
A plurality of drive rollers 118 to 125 that reciprocate the ticket 104 along this conveyance line are rotatably attached to the housing 103 at intervals shorter than the length of the ticket 104. . These drive rollers 118 to 126, which rotate in the forward and reverse directions by the operation of a pulse motor (not shown) capable of forward and backward rotation, are provided with - timing belts 127.
A tension roller 128 interposed between drive rollers 119 and 120 takes up the slack in the timing belt 127. Also, the print head 11
Drive rollers 118 other than the drive roller 122 facing 3
-121, 123-126 are in contact with pinch rollers 129, which are rotatably attached to the housing 103, respectively, with the conveyance line in between.

Behind the hopper stacker 102, there is a ticket supply device 130 that supplies a new ticket 104 drawn out from the hopper stacker 102 by the feed roller 106 to the conveyance line between the entrance/exit 101 and the print head 113. It is provided.

This pass ticket supplying device 130 has a feed-out four-ra 106[
a pair of biting W-ra 131, 132 located at,
A pair of delivery rollers 133 located on the conveyance line side,
134, a pair of supply belts 135, 136 wound around these biting rollers 131, 132 and delivery rollers 133, 134, and the biting roller 131.
, 132 and the feed rollers 133, 134 to take up slack in the supply belts 135, 136;
33, 134, and a pair of new bill guide plates 138 provided between the drive roller 121 and the pinch roller 129 in contact therewith. One of the biting rollers 131, the feed roller 133, and the tension roller 137 are rotated counterclockwise by the operation of a drive source (not shown) in FIG. 5, and in synchronization with this, the other biting roller 132 The feed roller 134 and the tension roller 137 are driven to rotate clockwise in FIG. 5.

Moreover, the feeding roller 106 and the biting roller 1
32, there is a feed roller 139 that is driven to rotate in the same direction as the biting roller 131 and feeds the new pass 104 drawn from the horapasta stirrer/force 102 to the biting rollers 131 and 132 side. A separation roller 140 is provided that faces the roller 139 and rotates in the opposite direction to prevent two or more passes 104 from passing when a plurality of passes 104 are sent in. .

Therefore, the tension spring 112 causes the feeding roller 10 to
The new ticket 104 pressed against the feed roller 13 is driven by the rotation of the feed roller 104.
9 and the separation roller 140, and due to the action of the separation roller 140 which rotates in reverse, only one pass ticket 104 is caught between the feed belt 13 between the rollers 131 and 132.
5,136 gaps. Then, while being held between the supply belts 135 and 136, the paper is sent out from the feed rollers 133 and 134 via the new guide plate 138 onto the conveyance line between the drive roller 121 and the pinch roller 129 that comes into contact with it.

Note that these new ticket guide plates 138 and the drive roller 121
A one-way flapper 141 that regulates the moving direction of the ticket 104 is provided between the pinch roller 129 and the pinch roller 129 that comes into contact with the flapper 141.
is pivotably attached to the housing 103, and the special equipment section 11
From the 7 side to the entrance 101 side or the bus stacker 105
In order to prevent the pass ticket 104 from being sent from the new ticket guide plate 138 to the pass ticket supply device 130 side when conveying the pass ticket 104 to the side, the one-way flapper 141 has a spring member (not shown) at the tip end. In FIG. 5, it is biased upward.

On the other hand, in the middle of the conveyance line between the drive rollers 119 and 120, there is a case where the pass ticket 104 is conveyed from the print head 113 side to the entrance/exit 101 side, and a hopper stacker 102.
A switching flapper 142 that switches the conveyance direction of the ticket 104 when collecting the ticket 104 within the housing 10
The switching flapper 1 is pivotally connected to the switching flapper 1.
42 is configured to swing by a flapper driving means such as a rotary solenoid (not shown).

The feeding roller 106, the drawing roller 107, the printing device 114, the driving rollers 118 to 126, the ticket supplying device 130, the flapper driving means, etc. are connected to the main body 2.
The timing of these operations is controlled by the processing control section 3 built into the rear part of the apparatus. For this reason, the delivery roller 133 . 134 and one-way flapper 132
between the hopper stacker 105 and the switching flapper 14
Optical sensors 143 to 149 for detecting passage of the pass 104 are arranged between the processing control unit 3 and the processing control unit 3.
It is designed to output a detection signal.

As shown in FIG. 7, which shows the flow of processing by the ticket processing unit 100, a collector collects a ticket 104 from a road user (customer) at a check barrier, exit gate, etc.
When the pass ticket 104 is inserted into the entrance/exit 101 in step A1, the optical sensor 143 detects this and the pulse motor rotates forward in step A2, resulting in the pass ticket 1 being inserted into the entrance/exit 101.
04 starts moving toward the special equipment section 117 along the conveyance line. When the optical sensor 144 detects the passing of the ticket 104, the reading head 111 reads the information recorded on the ticket 104 in step 83, and the recorded information on the ticket 104 is read in step A4. Determine whether it is normal or not.

If it is determined that the recorded information of the ticket 104 is normal in step A4, the conveyance continues as it is, and after the optical sensor 145 detects passage of the ticket 104, the pulse motor is driven after a certain period of time. The vehicle stops, and the ticket 104 is temporarily held in the special equipment section 117 at step A5.

During this - time standby, in step A6, charge settlement processing is performed using various processing buttons (not shown) displayed on the display panel 6 of the operation display section 1, the numeric keypad 4, etc. For example, when tolls are paid by highway car, credit card, IC card, etc. instead of by cash, the toll collector takes these cards entrusted by road users to the entrance 201 of the card processing unit 200. Insert the card, read the card data, and if there is no abnormality, confirm on the display panel 6, and operate the above-mentioned processing button.

As a result, the pulse motor of the pass ticket processing section 100 is reversed as shown in step A7, and the pass ticket 104 is conveyed from the special equipment section 117 toward the writing head section 116, and the pass ticket 104 is read by the optical sensor 146. At the time of detection, A
As shown in step 8, the writing head unit 116 writes information on the usage fee, date and time of use, exit gate, payment method, and data recorded on the card in the case of payment by card, etc. to the pass 104. Record. Then, in step A9, this recorded data is read by the reading head unit 115, and in step A10, it is determined whether or not the recorded information is correct.

If it is determined that there is no abnormality in the data recorded in this AIO step, the necessary recorded data is printed at a predetermined location on the pass ticket 104 by the print head 113 in the All step, and then the process proceeds to the A12 step. The switching flapper 142 is then swung toward the hopper stacker 102, and the pass ticket 104 is collected into the hopper stacker 102 in step A13. At this time, the pass ticket 104 is detected by the optical sensor 147.
After confirming the passage of M, the operation of the pulse motor is stopped.

If it is determined in step A4 or A10 that there is an abnormality in the record of the ticket 104, the ticket is not collected into the hopper stacker 102, and the switching flapper 142 is swung toward the entrance/exit 101 in step A14. The pass ticket 104 is returned to the entrance/exit 101. At this time, after the passage of the pass 104 is confirmed by the optical sensor 148, the operation of the pulse motor is stopped.

In addition, if the pass ticket 104 is inserted incorrectly, the entry/exit 101
The ticket 104 that has been returned to the user can be re-inserted correctly through the entrance/exit 101.

However, in the case of the above-mentioned recording abnormality, processing such as issuing a new pass 104 is performed using the processing button displayed on the display panel 6.

Such operations are similar when the pass 104 is damaged or lost. Furthermore, the above-mentioned special processing is also performed when various cards are invalidated or the like.

As mentioned above, by setting the special equipment section 117 that temporarily waits for the pass ticket 104, there is no need to take into account what happens after the procedure for processing the pass ticket 104 and other cards, which greatly improves work efficiency. good for

Furthermore, although the ticket processing section 100 has been described as a ticket verification machine, as shown in FIG. In step B1, the power is turned on, and in step B2, the operation button for starting work that appears on the display panel 6 of the operation display section 1 is pressed. As a result, as shown in step B3, the pulse motor rotates forward, and the feed roller 106 and ticket supply device 130 operate to take out one ticket 104 from the hopper stacker 102 and transfer it to the rad 115 side for reproduction. send to. When the optical sensors 149 and 144 detect the passing of the ticket 104, the reading head unit 115 reads the magnetic information of the ticket 105 in step B4, and based on this, the ticket 104 is detected in step B5. It is determined whether the ticket is a new ticket or whether the front and back sides are correct.

If it is determined that the pass ticket 104 is normal in step 85, the conveyance continues as it is, and the optical sensor 1
45, the operation of the pulse motor is stopped, and the ticket 104 temporarily waits in the special equipment section 117 as shown in step B6. This standby state continues until a push button (not shown) for vehicle type selection is operated.

Then, when the collector operates the push button for vehicle type selection in step B7, the pulse motor reverses in step B8, and the pass ticket 104 begins to move from the special equipment section 117 to the writing head section 116 side. When the passage of the ticket 104 is detected by the optical sensor 146, information such as the vehicle type, date and time, entrance gate, etc. is written on the ticket 104 by the writing head section 116 in step B9. Next, this recorded information is read by the reading head section 115 in a BIO step, and it is determined in a Bll step whether or not recording is being performed correctly.

If it is determined that the recording on the ticket 104 is normal in step B11, the necessary information is printed on the ticket 104 by the print head 113 in step B12, and as shown in step B13. It is sent out to the entrance/exit 101 as it is. At this time, the optical sensor 148
After detecting passage of the pass 104, the pulse motor stops operating.

The ticket 104 sent out to the entrance/exit 101 is handed to the road user by the collector at step B14. When the optical sensor 143 detects that the pass ticket 104 has been pulled out from the entrance/exit 101, the pulse motor rotates normally again in step B15, and the feed roller 106 and pass ticket supply device 130 are activated to remove the hopper stacker 102.
One pass ticket 104 is extracted from the machine and sent to the reading head section 115 side. And optical sensors 149, 14
4, the passage of the ticket 104 is detected, the reading head unit 115 reads the magnetic information of the ticket 104 in step B16, and based on this, it is determined in step B17 whether or not the ticket 104 is a new ticket. Alternatively, it is determined whether the front and back sides are correct.

If it is determined that the ticket 104 is normal in step 817, the conveyance continues, and after the passage of the ticket 104 is detected by the optical sensor 145, the operation of the pulse motor is stopped. As shown in step B7, the pass ticket 104 temporarily waits in the special equipment section 117, and then the process returns to step B7.

If an abnormality is found in the ticket 104 at any of the steps BS, Bll, and B17, the process moves to step B19, where it is determined that there is a recording abnormality, and the switching flapper 142 is activated at step B20. Hoppa stacker 102
For example, at step B21, this abnormal ticket 1
04 is collected into the hopper stacker 102, but after the optical sensor 147 detects the passage of this abnormal pass 104,
Return to step B3 above.

In this manner, by temporarily holding the normal ticket 104 in the special equipment section 117 in advance, the ticket 104 can be issued in a very short time after operating the push button for vehicle type selection.

Note that the processing mode of the pass processing section 100 is one for entrance gates, exit gates, check barriers, and transfer ticket issuing gates, and these processing modes can be switched by processing from the operation display section 1. This is accomplished by issuing a command to the binding section 3.

No. 10 representing a schematic structure of the card processing unit 200
As shown in the figure, this card processing unit 200 collectively processes various cards other than the above-mentioned pass 104, such as a highway card which is a prepaid card, a separate payment plate which is a credit card, or an IC card. .

This card processing unit 200 has the entrance/exit 201.
A conveyance line is formed in a straight line from the rear end of the housing 202 to the rear end of the housing 202 . Inside the casing 202, there is a card type sensor 203 that detects the type of card sequentially from the entrance/exit 201 along the conveyance line 2, and a thermal printing sensor 203 for recording necessary information for printable cards such as highway cards. A head 204, a reproducing head 205 that reads magnetic information from a magnetic recording section (not shown) formed on a card such as a credit card, a recording head 206 that writes new magnetic information to this magnetic recording section, and a recording head 206 that writes new magnetic information to the magnetic recording section formed on a card such as an IC card. A reading electrode 207 for reading recorded information is provided.

A plurality of drive rollers 208 to 215 for moving the card back and forth along the transport line are rotatably attached to the housing 202 at intervals shorter than the length of the card. Note that a pressing roller 216 is in contact with the thermal printing head 207, and driving rollers 213 and 214 are opposed to the reproducing head 205 and the recording head 206, respectively, with the conveyance line in between. A holding tool 217 is arranged to sandwich the line and face it. Further, drive rollers 208, 2 located between the entrance/exit 201 and the thermal print head 204
In FIG. 09 and FIG. 6, pinch collages 218, which are rotatably attached to the housing 202 with the conveyance line in between, abut the drive rollers 212 and 215 located on both sides of the drive rollers 113 and 214. There is.

Each of the drive rollers 208 to 215 and the reproducing head 205
and a pulse motor 219 that is installed below the recording head 206 and is capable of forward and reverse rotation, and are driven to rotate synchronously via timing belts 220 to 222, and these pulse motors 219 and the thermal print head 20
4, or the operations of the reproducing head 205, the recording head 206, the reading electrode 207, etc. are controlled by the processing control section 3 based on the detection signal from the card type sensor 203, etc.

Note that the reference numeral 224 in the figure is a tension roller.

Therefore, when the collector inserts the card received from the road user into the entrance/exit 201 when paying the toll, the pulse motor 2
19 rotates forward and draws the card into the housing 202, and when the card type sensor 203 detects that it is a highway card, the playback head 205 reads the current balance and incorporates it into the main body 2. After outputting the information to the processing control unit 3, the current usage fee is settled and the balance is written to the highway card using the recording head 206. Thereafter, the pulse motor 219 reverses and sends the highway card to the entrance/exit 201. On the way, the above-mentioned processing is confirmed by the reproducing head 205 as needed, and the above-mentioned balance is printed by the thermal printing head 204.

When the card type sensor 203 detects that the card is a credit card such as a separate payment plate, the playback head 205 reads the information recorded on the credit card of Party B and outputs this to the processing control section 3. After that, the pulse motor 219 reverses and sends the highway card to the entrance/exit 201. In the case of an IC card, the IC card is conveyed to the reading electrode 207, the information recorded there is read, and after this is output to the processing control section 3, the pulse motor 219 is reversed to move the IC card to the entrance/exit. 2
Send it to 01.

<Effects of the Invention> According to the present invention, even if passes with different magnetic recording densities are mixed between current terminal devices and new terminal devices, correct demodulation according to the magnetic recording density can be performed by detecting marks. You can do it.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 to 4 are diagrams showing embodiments of the present invention, Figures 5 to 7, and Figures 9 and 10 are ticket confirmation machines that are terminals of toll collection systems on toll motorways. Fig. 5 is a plan view showing the concept of the mechanism of the ticket processing section, Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the ■-■ arrow, Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure, and Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure when applied as a pass ticket issuing machine, Fig. 9 is a perspective view showing the external appearance, Fig. 10 is a mechanical conceptual diagram showing the general structure of the card processing section, and Fig. 11 is a current pass ticket. FIG. In the drawing, 11 is a barcode sensor, 12 is a barcode (mark), 14 is a reading head, 18 is an f#Im section, 19 is a 100BP I FM demodulator, 20 is a 2008PI FMi modulator, 21.22 .29 is a changeover switch, 23 is a hole (mark), 24 is a notch (mark), 25 is an FM demodulation circuit, 26 is a 100BPl wind clock generator, 27 is a 200BPT wind clock generator, 28 is a discrimination circuit, 104A is a new type of ticket with 200BPI, MC is 100B
PI's current pass, MS, is a magnetic stripe. Patent applicant Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. Agent

Claims (1)

[Claims] By detecting the magnetic recording density identification mark formed on the ticket, selecting a magnetic recording demodulation means according to the mark detection result and demodulating the output signal of the reading head, magnetic recording is performed on the magnetic stripe of the ticket. A method for reading information on a toll road ticket, the method comprising reading information on a toll road ticket.