JPH0530208Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to a coin counting mechanism (hereinafter simply referred to as counting mechanism) in a change machine, and in particular, it is capable of setting the number of coins to be ejected as change in one operation. Moreover, it relates to a purely mechanical counting mechanism that can simplify the structure of the change machine.

[Conventional technology and problems]

There are various types of change machines, but apart from complex ones that use electromagnetic actuators, such as change dispensers in automatic ticket vending machines at railway stations and vending machines for various products, there are many types of change machines that are used at retail stores. It is no exaggeration to say that there is currently only one type of change machine that is simple and purely mechanical, and can be installed in any place.

The counting mechanism in this conventional change machine is constructed as shown in FIG. 1, for example. That is, in FIG. 1, numeral 1 indicates a swing cylinder,
The swinging cylinder 1 is a thin-walled cylinder having a circular cross section, for example, with a vertically long notch 1a formed on the front side (right side in FIG. 1) for inserting a coin, which will be described later. A support rod 2 fixed to the frame is rotatably fitted. Therefore, the swing barrel 1 is supported and guided by the support rod 2 so as to be able to swing back and forth.

Further, the swing tube 1 has an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the coin, and can store a plurality of, for example, 10 yen coins C, stacked in the inner hole. In order to prevent the coins C, C from falling out of the opening at the lower end of the swinging barrel 1, a locking pawl 1b bent inwardly is integrally provided on the edge of the opening at the lower end of the swinging barrel 1. Under normal conditions, coin C,
C is locked by this locking pawl 1b and maintains the state shown in the figure. It is assumed that the distance between the locking claw 1b and the lower opening edge of the swinging barrel 1 is set to be slightly larger than the thickness of two coins C.

On the other hand, behind the locking pawl 1b, a vertical push-out plate 3 is provided close to the swing barrel 1 and fixed to a machine frame (not shown). This extrusion plate 3 is
Its relative position with respect to the swing tube 1 is set so that its upper edge is located slightly below the top surface of the second coin from the bottom among the coin groups C, C in the swing tube 1.

Therefore, if the lower front end of the swing barrel 1 is pushed backward, the push-out plate 3 will move forward relatively and push the two coins C, C on the locking claw 1b forward (not shown). ) Therefore, if you pick up these two coins C and C, you can take out the change, for example 20 yen, from the swing barrel 1.

However, in the conventional change machine having the above-mentioned swing barrel, the relative position of the push-out plate 3 is fixed for each swing barrel to simplify the mechanism, so it is necessary to handle change up to, for example, 999 yen. Sometimes, a minimum of 15 wafers, 4 each for each basic denomination coin of 1 yen, 10 yen or 100 yen, and 1 each for each 5-yen denomination coin of 5 yen, 50 yen and 500 yen,
1 is required, which not only increases the size and complicates the structure, but also increases the number of coins to be filled into each swing barrel 1 and the amount of effort required.

[Purpose of the invention] Therefore, the purpose of the invention is to provide a counting mechanism that can take out a predetermined number of coins from a single cylindrical body in which coins are stacked and stored. The purpose is to simplify the structure.

[Means for solving problems]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is a cylindrical body capable of storing coins by stacking them in the thickness direction, which is fixed to the machine frame while maintaining an almost vertical angular position, and is spaced between the opening edge of the lower end and the cylindrical body. An inner cylinder is formed with a locking piece at its lower end that maintains a constant spacing between the inner cylinder and the inner cylinder. An outer cylinder with a positioning shaft protruding from the outer cylinder, which is disposed near the outer surface of the outer cylinder, and whose upper end is supported by the outer cylinder and is guided so as to be swingable in the front and back direction perpendicular to the positioning axis, and which is placed on the operator's side. an operating arm formed with an operating claw at its lower end that is biased forward and whose swing locus interferes with the coin in the inner cylinder and is close to the lower opening edge of the outer cylinder; and a coin to be taken out from the inner cylinder. The upper end is supported by the machine frame and is guided so as to be swingable in the front and back direction, and each is biased forward, and the lower end is connected to the positioning shaft from the biasing direction of the outer cylinder. It has a circular arc part centered on the facing inclined cam and the swing axis, and also has a plurality of drive levers at the rear that form engagement parts with the operating arm, and the selected drive lever is moved rearward. When pushed, the outer cylinder is pushed in the opposite direction to the biasing direction due to the wedge action between the inclined cam and the positioning shaft, and then, when the positioning shaft rides on the arc, the locking piece of the inner cylinder and the lower end opening edge of the outer cylinder is set to be slightly larger than the thickness of the selected number of coins.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 7.

In FIGS. 2 and 3, reference numeral 4 indicates an inner cylinder, and this inner cylinder 4 is a cylinder whose cross section is circular, for example, as shown in FIG. A notch similar to the notch 1a for coin insertion in the swing barrel 1 shown in the first diagram is formed along the generatrix (on the right side in the figure and below in Figure 4), and is integrally formed by spot welding, for example. It is fixed to the machine frame 6 of the change machine via a flange member 5 coupled to the machine frame 6 while maintaining a substantially vertical angular position.
Further, a pair of horizontal locking pieces 7, 7 are integrally formed at the lower end of the inner cylinder 4, for example, by extending a part of the inner cylinder and bending the extended part inward. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, each of the locking pieces 7 in the illustrated embodiment extends rearward, passing under the lower end opening edge of the inner cylinder 4 and the outer cylinder, which will be described later. A gap is maintained between the locking piece 7 and the lower end opening edge of the inner tube 4, which is slightly larger than the thickness of four coins C stored in the inner tube.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, an outer tube 8 is fitted onto the outside of the inner tube 4 so as to be slidable in the vertical direction. The outer cylinder 8 in the illustrated embodiment is a cylinder with a circular cross section, and a notch (see FIG. 3) that matches that of the inner cylinder 4 is formed at the front thereof.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a first spring hanging pin 11 is provided at the rear upper end of the outer cylinder 8, and a first spring hanging pin 11 is further provided at the upper end of the inner cylinder 4 above the first spring hanging pin 11. The second spring hanging pins 12 are installed respectively, and the second spring hanging pins 12
is inserted through a vertically long relief hole 9 opened in the outer cylinder 8 and protrudes outside the outer cylinder 8.

As shown in FIG. 3, a cylindrical spring 13 as a tension coil spring is elastically mounted between the first and second spring hook pins 11 and 12, and the elasticity of the cylindrical spring 13 causes the outer cylinder to 8 is biased upward, but in a normal state where no external force acts on the outer cylinder 8, the lower opening edge of the relief hole 9 is pressed against the second spring fixed to the machine frame 6 via the inner cylinder 4. It is locked by the hanging pin 12 and maintains the relative position shown in the third figure with respect to the inner cylinder 4.

Further, a substantially horizontal positioning shaft 14 projects from the lower end of the outer circumferential surface of the outer cylinder 8 .

On the other hand, near the outer surface of the outer cylinder 8 on the side from which the positioning shaft 14 is protruded, an actuation arm 15 is provided that extends in the vertical direction. The actuating arm 15 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is a plate-like body formed into an L-shaped cross section by bending one (rear) side edge to increase rigidity. It is pivotally supported by the upper end of the outer cylinder 8, and is guided so as to be swingable in the front and rear directions perpendicular to the positioning shaft 14.

The lower end of the actuating arm 15 is bent toward the inner and outer cylinders 4 and 8, and the front end (the right end in FIG. 3) of this almost horizontal bent plate is further bent upward to engage the actuating arm. 15a is formed. As shown in FIG. 2, the operating claw 15a is formed at a position such that when the operating arm 15 swings back and forth, it interferes with the coins C, C in the inner cylinder 4 and moves between the locking pieces 7, 7. In addition, the swing locus of the upper end of the operating claw 15a is set to be close to the lower opening edge of the outer cylinder 8 so that the operating claw 15a can pass through the operating claw 15a.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3, it is wrapped around the swing shaft of the actuating arm 14 (not shown in FIG. 2).
The operating arm 15 is biased counterclockwise in FIG. 3 due to the elasticity of the arm spring 16 as a torsion coil spring. However, in a normal state where no external force is applied to the operating arm, the lower end of the operating arm 15 is locked to the positioning shaft 14 and maintained in the substantially vertical angular position shown in the third figure. At this time, it is assumed that the operating claw 15a at the lower end of the operating arm is located in front of the inner cylinder 4 and at a position where it does not interfere with the coin C.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, there are a plurality of (in the illustrated embodiment, four
drive levers 17, 17 are provided.
Each drive lever 17 is provided corresponding to the number of coins taken out from the inner cylinder 4. That is, the first drive lever 17-1 on the leftmost side in FIG.
The third drive lever 17-3, which is the third one from the left, is an operating member for taking out three coins, and as described later, the drive lever is adjusted according to the amount of change. Select 17 and operate.

As shown in FIG. 5, each drive lever 17 is generally an L-shaped plate with its left and right sides reversed, and its upper end is swingably supported on a lever shaft 18. There is. As shown in FIG. 2, the lever shaft 8 loosely fits into the upper end of the inner cylinder 4, extends substantially horizontally, and is fixed to the machine frame 6 at both ends.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, each drive lever 17
A washer-like spacer 19 is integrally connected, for example, by welding, to the upper end of the fitting part with the lever shaft 18, which lengthens the fitting part of the drive lever 17 and the lever shaft 18, thereby increasing the length of the drive lever. 17th 2nd
The horizontal deviation in the figure is minimized. In addition,
In order to prevent the drive levers 17, 17 from moving along the lever shaft 18, an E-shaped retaining ring 21 is fitted on the lever shaft 18 between the drive levers and outside the drive lever group.

Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, a back-up shaft 22 is provided at the rear of the lower end of the inner cylinder 4.
extends substantially parallel to the lever shaft 18,
This backup shaft 22 passes through a substantially horizontal backup plate portion 17a integrally formed at the lower end of the drive lever 17, and is slidably engaged with an arc-shaped guide hole 17bs opened therein. There is. And the backup plate part 1 of each drive lever.
E-type retaining rings (not shown) are fitted to the backup shafts 22 on both sides of the shaft 7a. With the above configuration, together with the presence of the spacer 19 (FIG. 2), each drive lever 17 is effectively prevented from swinging from side to side in FIG. It will be guided so that it can swing.

As shown in FIG. 5, the upper end of each drive lever 17 pivotally supported on the lever shaft 18 is provided with a lever spring 2, for example a torsion coil spring.
5. Due to the elasticity of the lever spring 23, each drive lever 17 is urged in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 5. However, in the standby state in which no external force is acting on the drive lever 17, the rear opening edge of the guide hole 17b is engaged with the backup shaft 22, and the substantially vertical main body of each drive lever 17 maintains the angular position shown in FIG. 5, which is inclined slightly counterclockwise from the vertical.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, in front of the lower edge of the backup plate portion 17a of each drive lever, there is an inclined cam 24 that slopes downward toward the front and a circular arc portion centered on the swing axis of the drive lever 17. 25 are arranged in series. These inclined cams 24 and arcuate portions 2
5 faces the positioning shaft 14 from the urging direction of the outer cylinder 8, that is, from above. However, arc portion 2
The radius of curvature of 5 is different for each drive lever 17, and the first drive lever 17-1, which is the one closest to you in FIG.
The radius of curvature of the circular arc portion 25 is the largest, followed by the adjacent second drive lever 17-2, similarly, that of the third drive lever 17-3 is smaller than that of the second drive lever 17-2, and the radius of curvature of the adjacent second drive lever 17-3 is smaller than that of the second drive lever 17-2. Lever 17-4
It is the smallest. The absolute value of the radius of curvature of each arcuate portion 25 is determined by the wedge action between the inclined cam 24 and the positioning shaft 14 that causes the outer cylinder 8 to move in the urging direction when the selected drive lever 17 is pushed backward. is pushed downward in the opposite direction, and then the positioning shaft 14
In the state where the coin rests on the arcuate portion 15, the distance between the locking piece 7 of the inner cylinder and the lower opening edge of the outer cylinder 8 is set to be slightly larger than the thickness of the selected number of coins. In other words, the first to fourth drive levers 17-1 to 17-4 are operated separately, the outer tube 8 is pushed down against the elasticity of the cylindrical spring 13, and the positioning shaft 14 is moved to each arcuate portion 25. When riding on the vehicle, the locking piece 7 of the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder 8
The distance between the bottom opening edge and the bottom opening edge is about 1 coin to 4
It will be slightly larger than the thickness of the sheet. By the way,
In the illustrated embodiment, in the standby state where no external force is applied to the outer cylinder 8, the lower opening edge of the outer cylinder 8 is aligned with that of the inner cylinder 4 (see Fig. 2), and as described above, the lower end opening edge of the outer cylinder 8 is aligned with that of the inner cylinder 4. Since the distance between the lower opening edge and the locking piece 7 is set to be slightly larger than the thickness of four coins, there is no need to push down the outer cylinder 8 to take out the four coins. The radius of curvature of the circular arc portion 25 is set so that it does not come into contact with the positioning shaft 14 even when the four drive lever 17-4 is operated.

Further, below the front edge of each drive lever 17,
As shown in FIG. 5, for example, an arcuate stem 17
c is integrally provided. Each stem 17c is
In order to be able to operate each drive lever 17 independently, each drive lever is provided at a different protruding position in the vertical direction, and in the illustrated embodiment, the stem 17c of the first drive lever 17-1 (1) is provided at the lowest position, followed by that 17c(2) of the second drive lever 17-2 above it, and so on, the lower the number of coins to be taken out, the lower the stem 17c is provided. A push button 26 is integrally connected to the front end of each stem 17c, and as shown in FIG. is marked. In the illustrated embodiment, the inner cylinder 4 stores 100 yen coins, so the amount is in units of 100 yen.

The reason why the stem 17c of the drive lever 17 is positioned lower as the number of coins to be taken out is smaller is that in the configuration of the illustrated embodiment, it is necessary to push the outer cylinder downward as the number of coins to be taken out is smaller. 24 (FIG. 5) becomes steeper, the torque required to operate the drive lever 17 increases, so this is to average it out.

Furthermore, at the center of the rear edge of each drive lever 17, for example, a semicircular engagement portion 17d (FIG. 5) is provided.
is provided integrally with the bent plate portion of the actuating arm 15 facing the engaging portion 17d.
As shown in the figure, the first to fourth drive levers 17-
A receiving piece 15b that can be engaged with the engaging portions 17d and 17d of 1 to 17-4 is integrally provided in a protruding manner.

In a standby state in which no external force is applied to the drive lever 17, the engaging portion 17d and the receiving piece 15b maintain a constant angular interval as shown in FIG.

[Effect]

For example, when taking out two 100 yen coins, the counting mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above pushes the push button 26 labeled "200" of the second drive lever 17-2 backward. do. Then, the second
Only the drive lever 17-2 rotates clockwise in FIG. Due to the wedge action generated between the positioning shaft 14 and the positioning shaft 14, the positioning shaft 14 and the outer cylinder 8 integrated therewith are pushed down against the elasticity of the cylinder spring 13, and as shown in FIG. -2 engaging portion 17d
When it comes into contact with the receiving piece 15b of the actuation arm 15, the positioning shaft 14 rides on the circular arc portion 25 of the second drive lever, and even if the second drive lever further rotates clockwise thereafter, the position of the outer cylinder 8 remains unchanged. Without changing, the distance between the locking piece 7 of the inner cylinder and the lower opening edge of the outer cylinder 8 is maintained at a constant value slightly larger than the thickness of two coins.
Note that until the engaging portion 17d of the second drive lever comes into contact with the receiving piece 15b of the actuating arm, the actuating arm 1
5 is stationary and of course maintains the angular position shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.

When the second drive lever 17-2 is further pushed rearward from the state shown in FIG.
The actuation claw 15b, which is pushed by the engagement portion 17d of the drive lever and rotates clockwise together with the second drive lever 17-2, and is integrated with the actuation arm 15, is stacked and stored in the inner cylinder 4. 2 from the bottom of the column of coins
Push out the coins C and C backward (see Figure 7).

When the push button of the second drive lever 17-2 is pushed all the way, the front opening edge of the guide hole 17b of the second drive lever comes into contact with the backup shaft 22, as shown in FIG. A second drive lever 17-2 is locked to this backup shaft 22. At this time, it is assumed that the shape and dimensions of each member are set so that the two coins pushed out by the actuating claw 15a partially overlap with the coin in the inner cylinder 4.

From the state shown in FIG. 7, the second drive lever 17-2
When you release your finger that was pressing the push button 26 and release the second drive lever, the elasticity of the lever spring 23 causes the second drive lever 17-2 to rotate counterclockwise in FIG. After passing through the illustrated state, the device returns to the standby state illustrated in the fifth figure.

At the same time, due to the elasticity of the arm spring 16, the operating arm 15 follows the second drive lever 17-2 and rotates counterclockwise, transferring the two pushed out coins to the seventh
It returns to the standby position shown in FIG. 5 while remaining in the position shown. At this time, the two pushed out coins support the coins in the inner cylinder 4 and secure a space for the return path of the operating claw 15a, so the operating arm 15 returns reliably even if the elasticity of the arm spring 16 is small.

Then, as shown in Fig. 7, the two coins pushed out backwards may be picked up directly from behind with the fingers, depending on the structure of the change machine that employs this counting mechanism, or alternatively, , FIG. 7 Using a take-out member (not shown) that is movably guided in the paper direction and interferes only with the pushed-out coins, the pushed-out coins are brushed off by an operation other than the selection and operation of the drive lever 17. You can do it like this.

The operation of the above-mentioned counting mechanism is the same even when other drive levers are used, and it goes without saying that the only difference is the number of coins pushed out backwards.

[Other Examples]

Note that the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, and can be implemented with various modifications.

For example, in the illustrated embodiment, four drive levers are provided, but this is because it is assumed that a change machine will be configured in combination with a counting mechanism that takes out only one quintuple unit coin. A drive lever for taking out five basic unit coins may be added for exchanging quintuple unit coins.

Further, in the illustrated embodiment, a plurality of push buttons 26, 26
The lower ends of the plurality of drive levers are bent in the left-right direction, and the push buttons 26, 26 are respectively engaged with the corresponding drive levers at the same height. Of course, they may be arranged horizontally (not shown).

Furthermore, in the illustrated embodiment, the outer cylinder 8 is urged upward so that the inclined cam 24 and the circular arc portion 25 of the drive lever 17 face the positioning shaft 14 from above. (not shown), so that the inclined cam 24 and the arc portion 25 face the positioning shaft 14 from below.
In this case, the arc portion 25 becomes a concave arc.

〔effect〕

As is clear from the above description, the present invention stores coins in a stacked manner, and forms a locking piece with a gap at the lower end of the inner cylinder fixed to the machine frame, while the locking piece is formed on the outer side of the inner cylinder. An outer cylinder, which swingably supports an operating arm having an operating claw at its lower end and has a horizontal positioning shaft projecting from its lower end, is fitted so as to be slidable in the vertical direction. On the other hand, near this outer cylinder, the upper end is supported on the machine frame and is guided so as to be able to swing in the same direction as the operating arm, each of which holds a coin to be taken out from the inner cylinder. A plurality of drive levers corresponding to the number of drive levers are arranged, and a circular arc part with a different radius of curvature formed at the lower end of each drive lever, and an inclined cam connected to the arc part are positioned with respect to the direction in which the outer cylinder is urged. By operating the selected drive lever, the outer cylinder is biased in the biasing direction by the wedge action generated by the engagement between the tilting cam and the positioning shaft, without first moving the actuating arm. By moving the inner cylinder in the opposite direction and making the distance between the locking piece of the inner cylinder and the lower opening edge of the outer cylinder slightly larger than the thickness of the specified number of coins, then move the positioning shaft onto the circular arc part. Then, the above distance is fixed, and at the same time, the drive lever and the actuating arm are engaged, and the latter's actuating claw pushes out a specified number of coins, so only one cylinder is provided to store the coins. Therefore, the structure of the change machine can be simplified.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic sectional view showing an example of a conventional counting mechanism, Fig. 2 is a partially sectional front view of a counting mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a counting mechanism with the drive lever removed. 4 is a side view of the mechanism, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the inner cylinder and outer cylinder, FIG. 5 is a side view of the counting mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 6 and 7 are
The figure is a side view similar to FIG. 5 for explaining the operation of the counting mechanism. 4... Inner cylinder, 6... Machine frame, 7... Locking piece, 8...
... Outer cylinder, 13 ... Cylindrical spring, 14 ... Positioning shaft,
15... Actuation arm, 15a... Actuation claw, 15b
...Socket piece, 16...Arm spring, 17...Drive lever, 17d...Engaging portion, 18...Lever shaft, 2
3... Lever spring, 24... Inclined cam, 25...
Arc part, C...coin.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] 1. A cylindrical body capable of storing coins by stacking them in the thickness direction, which is fixed to a machine frame while maintaining an almost vertical angular position, and has a certain distance between it and the lower opening edge. An inner cylinder has a locking piece formed at its lower end to maintain the spacing, and is slidably fitted on the outside of this inner cylinder, is biased upwardly or downwardly, and has an approximately horizontal positioning shaft at its lower end. A projecting outer cylinder is provided near the outer surface of the outer cylinder, the upper end is supported by the outer cylinder, and is guided so as to be swingable in the front and back direction perpendicular to the positioning axis, and is positioned in front of the operator side. Along with being energized,
an operating arm having a lower end formed with an operating claw whose swing locus interferes with the coins in the inner cylinder and is close to the lower opening edge of the outer cylinder; each arm is provided in correspondence with the number of coins to be taken out from the inner cylinder; The upper end is supported by the machine frame and is guided so as to be able to swing back and forth.
Each is biased forward, and an inclined cam facing the positioning shaft from the biasing direction of the outer cylinder and a circular arc portion centered on the swing shaft are provided in succession at the lower end, and
It has a plurality of drive levers at the rear that form engagement parts with the actuation arm, and when a selected drive lever is pushed rearward, the outer cylinder is moved by a wedge action between the tilt cam and the positioning shaft. When the positioning shaft is pushed in the opposite direction to the biasing direction and then rides on the circular arc part, the distance between the locking piece of the inner cylinder and the lower end opening edge of the outer cylinder is larger than the thickness of the selected number of coins. A coin counting mechanism characterized by being set to be slightly larger. 2. The coin counting mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the outer cylinder is urged upward so that the inclined cam and the arc portion of the drive lever face the positioning shaft from above. 3. The coin counting mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the outer cylinder is urged downward so that the inclined cam and the arc portion of the drive lever face the positioning shaft from below.