JPH0525357B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to an IC card reader that can use an IC card that also has a magnetic stripe.

(Prior technology) In order to use a card that has both the functions of a magnetic card and an IC card, a card that can be used as both an IC card and a magnetic card is equipped with both a magnetic head that makes sliding contact with the magnetic stripe and a terminal that makes contact with the contacts. IC card readers have been proposed. The one described in JP-A-60-207987 is an example of this.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) There are various types of IC cards that also have a magnetic stripe. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, an IC has a contact 42 connected to a built-in IC on one surface of the distal end in the insertion direction, and a magnetic stripe 41 is formed on the same surface as the contact 42.
As shown in FIG. 5, there is a card 40, and an IC card 45 which has a magnetic stripe 46 on one side and a contact 47 connected to a built-in IC on the other side at the rear end in the insertion direction. Others have magnetic stripes formed on both sides.

In this way, although there are various types of IC cards, conventional IC card readers have only one terminal that contacts the IC contacts, so they cannot be used with IC cards other than one type. I couldn't use it.

Therefore, in order to accommodate various IC cards, it is conceivable to arrange the magnetic head and terminal section on both sides of the card path, but in that case, it is possible to arrange the magnetic head and terminal section in a smaller space. desired.

The present invention has been made to solve these conventional problems, and is an IC card reader that can arrange a magnetic head and a terminal part in a smaller space, and can use multiple types of cards. The purpose is to provide

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention provides a first terminal portion that is provided on one side of a card passage and that is capable of contacting and separating from contacts of an IC card positioned within the card passage; a second terminal section provided on the opposite side of the first terminal section across the passageway and shifted from the first terminal section in the card transport direction; and a magnetic head provided on both sides of the card passageway. , a stopper part common to the two types of cards that can close the card passage so that the card cannot pass, and the distance between the stopper part and the first terminal part is equal to the distance from the end in the running direction of one type of card to the contact point. The distance between the stopper part and the second terminal part is made to match the distance from the running direction end of another type of card to the contact point, and the distance between the stopper part and the second terminal part is made to match the distance from the end of another type of card in the running direction to the contact point. The card is characterized in that either the first terminal section or the second terminal section is brought into selective contact with a contact point of the card in a state where they are brought into contact and positioned.

(Function) When an IC card is inserted into the card reader, the magnetic head comes into sliding contact with the magnetic stripe, and the type of IC card can be determined from the read signal of the magnetic head. If it is determined that it is a certain type of IC card, the card passage is closed with the stopper part, one end of the IC card is brought into contact with the stopper part, and one of the first or second terminal parts is selectively connected to the contacts of the IC card. contact with. In the case of another type of IC card, the other end of the IC card is brought into contact with the stopper portion, and the other of the first or second terminal portions is brought into selective contact with the contacts of the IC card.

(Embodiment) In FIG. 2, reference numerals 1 and 2 are side plates that regulate the width direction of the card passage, and the side plate 1 is formed with two guide blocks 3 and 4 projecting in a right angle direction. As shown in FIG. 1, the guide blocks 3 and 4 are formed parallel to each other with a predetermined gap therebetween to form a card passage 15. Pins 17 and 18 are fixed to the guide block 3, and the head holding plate 1 is attached to these pins 17 and 18.
6 is swingably supported. Head holding plate 1
A magnetic head 5 is attached to 6. Although not shown, a head holding plate is similarly supported by pins on the guide block 4 side so as to be swingable, and a magnetic head 25 is attached to this head holding plate. These magnetic heads 2 and 25 are installed at positions slightly shifted toward the card insertion slot (to the right in the figure) from the center of the card passage 15 in the card conveyance direction, and the front end surfaces of the heads are attached to the card passage 15.
are being encouraged to expand into

The side plate 2 faces the other side plate 1 with a width slightly wider than the width of the IC card. Widths 13 and 14 are fixedly planted on opposite sides, respectively. Mounting plates 20 and 21, which are U-shaped when viewed from above, are rotatably inserted into the shafts 13 and 14, and a plurality of terminal blocks 9 and 29 are connected to these mounting plates 20 and 21, respectively. terminal parts 19,
39 is fixed. The mounting plates 20 and 21 are biased to rotate in a direction in which the terminal portions 19 and 39 are separated from the card passage 15 by springs (not shown). Each of the above mounting plates 20 and 21 is the solenoid 1
When the solenoids 10 and 30 are energized and the plungers are attracted, the mounting plates 20 and 21 are rotated against the force, and the terminal parts 19 and 39 are connected to the card passage. They are now moving into the top 15. If one terminal part 19 is a first terminal part, the other terminal part 39 is a second terminal part, and these terminal parts 19, 39
are arranged so as to be shifted back and forth with respect to the card conveyance direction. Specifically, one terminal portion 19 is located further back than the magnetic heads 5, 25, and the other terminal portion 39 is located closer to the card insertion slot than the magnetic heads 5, 25. The guide block 3 is formed with a card receiving part 3c at a position facing the terminal part 39, and the guide block 4 is formed with a card receiving part 4c at a position facing the terminal part 19.
c is formed.

A cylindrical guide portion 4a is fixed to the guide block 4 in a direction perpendicular thereto. Guide part 4a
communicates with a card passage 15, and a cylindrical stopper 11 is inserted into this guide portion 4a. The stopper 11 is connected to the plunger of a solenoid 12 mounted on the side plate 1. When the solenoid 12 is energized and its plunger is attracted, the stopper 11 advances into the card passage 15 and closes the card passage 15 so that no card can pass through.
When the solenoid 12 is demagnetized, the stopper 11 is retracted from the card passage 15 by the biasing force of the spring.

In the vicinity of the magnetic heads 5, 25, card transport rollers 6, 6 are arranged on the widthwise sides of the card path 15. The stopper 11 is
The card conveyance roller 6, which is on the widthwise side of the card passage with respect to the mounting position of the magnetic heads 5, 25,
It is located on the side of 6. In Stoppa 11,
The leading end of an IC card inserted and conveyed from the right side of the figure can come into contact with it, and the rear end of an IC card that is conveyed in the opposite direction from the back of the card passage 15 can come into contact with it. As a result, the card passage 15 is closed so that the IC card cannot pass through, and
The IC card is positioned at a predetermined position. The distance between the stopper 11 and the first terminal portion 19 is made to match the distance from the end of one type of card 45 in the running direction to the contact point 47, and the distance between the stopper portion 11 and the second terminal portion 3
9 is made to match the distance from the end of another type of card 40 in the running direction to the contact point 42. Here, the stopper 11 has a certain size in the card transport direction, and the stopper 11 is disposed offset from the transport rollers 6, 6 in the width direction of the card path. Therefore, when the card is positioned, the ends of the card are not pinched by the conveyance rollers 6, 6. If the edge of the card were to stop with being pinched between the transport rollers 6 and 6 in the positioning state, the load at the next startup would be large, causing a large current to flow at the time of startup, and the transport rollers 6,
This is to avoid such problems since the wear of the parts 6 will increase and the lifespan will be shortened. In particular, with respect to the rollers that transport the card when reading information on the magnetic stripe with the magnetic head, it is important to prevent the card from coming into contact with the transport rollers in the positioning state described above.

A pair of card conveyance rollers 7, 7 and 8, 8 are also arranged before and after the card passage 15.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained.

When an IC card with a magnetic stripe is inserted into the card insertion slot, the magnetic stripe is detected by a well-known prehead (not shown), the shutter is opened, the card is taken in, and the card is transferred to the transport rollers 7, 5,
The card is conveyed within the card passage 15 by the rotational drive of the card 8. When the card passes the positions of the magnetic heads 5, 25, information recorded on the magnetic stripe of the card is read. Since the read information also includes card type information, the card type is determined from the read information.

Assuming that the inserted card is the type of card 40 shown in FIG. Once transported in the opposite direction. At the same time, the solenoid 12 is energized to move the stopper 11 to the card passage 1.
5 and closes the card passage 15 so that the card cannot pass through. In this state, transport the card 40 again to the left side of the figure and place the tip of the card 40 on the stopper 11.
Position it by touching it with . In this positioning state, the solenoid 30 is energized so that one of the two terminal parts 19, 39 advances into the card passage 15. This allows the terminal portion 39 to come into contact with the contacts 42 of the card 40 and exchange information signals with the built-in IC.

If the inserted IC card is an IC card 45 as shown in FIG. Close the card passage 15 (at this time, the card 45
is conveyed further away than the conveyance rollers 6, 6), and then the card 45 is conveyed in the opposite direction and the rear end of the card 45 is brought into contact with the stopper 11 for positioning. In this state, the solenoid 10 is excited,
One terminal part 1 of the two terminal parts 19 and 39
9 is selectively advanced to the card passage 15 side and brought into contact with the contact point 47 of the card 45 to exchange information signals with the built-in IC.

In this way, according to the above embodiment, multiple types of
In addition to being able to use an IC card, two terminal sections 19 and 39 are arranged with the card passage 15 in between and shifted in the card transport direction, and the card position is determined between these two terminal sections 19 and 39. A stopper 11 is arranged, and the two terminal parts 19,
Since the magnetic head 39 is brought into selective contact with the card contact, only one stopper part is required, and the magnetic head and terminal part can be arranged in a small, limited space.

Note that if the card is fed by a stepping motor, the card can be accurately positioned without providing a stopper portion, but the configuration of the control circuit and the like becomes complicated. If you try to feed the card with a normal motor other than a stepping motor,
Since it is difficult to accurately position by rotating the motor alone, a stopper is required. According to the above-mentioned embodiment of the present invention, even though a stopper section is provided in a card reader that can use a plurality of types of IC cards, only one stopper section is required, and the above-described effects can be achieved.

The stopper part does not necessarily need to be placed in the middle between the two terminal parts, and may be provided on the card insertion slot side or further back than the two terminal parts. FIG. 3 schematically shows such a modified embodiment, in which a stopper part 51 is arranged closer to the card insertion slot than the two terminal parts 19, 39. Reference numeral 55 denotes an IC card, and with one end of the card 55 in contact with the stopper part 51 and positioned, one of the terminal parts 19 and 39 is selectively brought into contact with a contact point of the card 55. Reference numerals 52 and 53 are card transport rollers, and 53 is a magnetic head.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 3 also provides the same effects as the embodiment described above.

(Effects of the Invention) According to the present invention, the first
A second terminal part is provided on the opposite side of the first terminal part across the card passageway and shifted from the first terminal part in the card conveying direction, and the card passageway is closed so that the card cannot pass through. A common stopper part is provided for two types of cards that can be used, and the distance between this stopper part and the first terminal part is made to match the distance from the running direction end of one type of card to the contact point. The distance to the second terminal part is made to match the distance from the end of another type of card in the running direction to the contact point,
Since the card is positioned in contact with the stopper part, either the first terminal part or the second terminal part is selectively brought into contact with the contacts of the card, so that multiple types of IC cards can be handled at the same time. It is possible to position and use it with one stopper part, the structure is simple, and the terminal part and the magnetic head can be arranged in a small limited space.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partially sectional front view showing one embodiment of the IC card reader according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the same, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of the IC card reader according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an example of an IC card that can be used in the IC card reader of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a plan view showing another example of an IC card. 5, 25...Magnetic head, 11...Stopper,
15... Card passageway, 19, 39... Terminal section, 4
0,45,55...IC card, 42,47...
contact.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A first terminal portion provided on one side of the card passage and capable of contacting and separating from the contacts of an IC card positioned within the card passage; a second terminal section provided on the opposite side of the terminal section and offset from the first terminal section in the card transport direction; a magnetic head provided on both sides of the card passageway; a stopper part common to two types of cards that can be closed to each other; the distance between the stopper part and the first terminal part is made to match the distance from the end of one type of card in the running direction to the contact point; The distance between the stopper part and the second terminal part is made to match the distance from the running direction end of another type of card to the contact point, and when the card is positioned in contact with the stopper part, An IC card reader characterized in that either one of the first terminal section and the second terminal section is brought into selective contact with a contact point of the card.