JPS6051159B2 - Device for determining authenticity and denomination of coins of multiple denominations - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to coin sorting machines, and more particularly to an apparatus for determining the face value of coins and rejecting undesirable coins and counterfeit coins.

In this specification, the term "coin" refers not only to genuine coins, but also to coins, counterfeit coins, and other coins that may be inserted into devices operated by coins. ``Acceptable coins'' are defined to refer to metal discs, washers, and other miscellaneous articles; and ``acceptable coins'' are defined as coins operated by coin-operated devices such as those described above. It means a coin that is genuine within the particular monetary system for which it is designed, and that has a face value that the device can accept.
It has already been known that two attributes of a coin can be used to determine the face value of the coin.

In many cases, determining the face value of a coin also indicates its authenticity. Until now, a magnetic field generated by a magnet mounted close to the passage of the coin is applied to a coin inserted into the device,
A device has been proposed in which an eddy current is generated inside the coin by the movement of the coin relative to this magnetic field. In this device, the magnetic field interacting with the magnet combines with the eddy currents to generate a force that tends to prevent the coin from moving within the magnetic field. As a result of a coin made of a conductive non-ferromagnetic material passing through a static magnetic field,
The coin's velocity is reduced by an amount directly proportional to the coin's conductivity divided by its density, i.e., the coin's acceptance ratio. Therefore, the speed of movement of the coin sensed downstream of the magnetic field is one indicator for examining the coin's authenticity and face value. On the other hand, the chord length of the coin also serves as an indicator for achieving the above purpose. By comparing the known index value of a genuine coin with a particular denomination desired to be received in the device, as described above, to the examined corresponding index value of the individual coin as described above. It is then determined whether the particular coin is acceptable. The first purpose of this invention is to increase the face value of coins. A second object is to provide a coin sorting machine which has the ability to detect coins with high reliability and which is economical to manufacture and maintain. To provide a coin sorting machine which has the ability to accept many different types of coins and can be easily modified in its installation position so that it can accept additionally different types of coins. .

According to the invention, the above-mentioned examination of the various attributes of the coin is carried out by means of a coin presence/absence sensing device, such as a photoelectric device, by transmitting an electrical output signal to a combination circuit for discrimination. .

If it is determined that the coin is acceptable, a signal indicating the face value of the coin is first transferred to an accumulator and then to an accumulator, e.g. It is transferred to the device inside. For example, in a device designed to accept three or four types of coins, three sensing devices may be used in a two-step examination process, a single primary sensing device and a pair of secondary sensing devices. I can do it.

These pair of sub-sensing devices are arranged apart from the main sensing device in the direction of movement of the coin, and are arranged above the coin support passage so as to be separated from each other in the direction of movement of the coin. . In the first screening stage, the three sensing devices work together with a combinational circuit to sort all the coins inserted into the coin sorter into five types according to their size: (a) these and these three. (b) a coin of sufficient size to simultaneously shield all three sensing devices; (b) a coin that is large enough to simultaneously shield all two sensing devices; (c) A main sensing device and two sub-sensing devices.”
a coin that is large enough to simultaneously block one of the sub-sensing devices, but not large enough to simultaneously block the other sub-sensing device at any point in time; (d) a high-position coin; It is not large enough to shield the secondary sensing device located at the lower position, but is large enough to shield the primary sensing device and the secondary sensing device located at a lower position sequentially rather than simultaneously. and (e) coins that are so large that they cannot block any sensing device. The second step of the examination determines whether the function, which depends on both the speed of the coin's motion and the length of the string, is within predetermined limits.

Such a discriminating operation is accomplished by measuring the shielding time of the sensing device by means of a predetermined circuit. That is, the circuit compares the duration of the signals emitted by the discriminator with predetermined values indicating acceptable coins, and if the comparison is positive, the coin inserted into the coin discriminator is Generates a signal indicating that the item has an acceptable face value. The present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to preferred embodiments, which are shown schematically in the accompanying drawings, the dimensions and scale of which are not shown.

In the following explanation, the present invention is explained using AND logic elements and OR logic elements, but it is also possible to use logic elements in place of the above-mentioned elements without departing from the scope of the present invention. This will be obvious to those skilled in the art. Similarly, although in almost all cases the term single signal is used to refer to a relatively high output voltage emanating from a certain type of device having two output voltages, the present invention The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned uses of signals such as (a) and (b). FIG. 1 shows a coin sorter 10 having a coin support passage 12 and two inclined surfaces 14, 16 forming a serpentine passage.

The coin sorter 10 further includes a coin locking device 18 controlled by a solenoid, a magnetic coin removing device 19,
It includes an eddy current damping magnet 20, a group of coin presence/absence sensing means 21 for sensing various attributes of the coin to determine whether or not the coin is acceptable, and a coin acceptance gate 22. , a coin accepting passage 23 and a coin rejecting passage 24. When a coin is inserted into the coin sorting machine 10 through the funnel-shaped coin input port 26, the coin falls toward the coin support passage 12.

During the falling movement, the coin passes through a meandering path formed by the inclined surfaces 14 and 16, during which time the coin is decelerated, and then the coin is stopped by a coin locking device which constitutes a mechanical stop. 18 makes it stand still on the coin support passage 12. Prior to this, the coin passes through a coin arrival sensing device 28 as it falls toward the coin support path 12. At this time, the coin arrival sensing device 28 senses the presence of a coin within the coin sorter 10 and initiates operation of various electronic components described below. A wide variety of sensing devices can be used, such as mechanical or inductive switches.

However, particularly preferred is a light source and a photoelectric sensing transistor that cooperate with each other and are arranged opposite to each other across the coin path. The coin arrival sensing device generates a signal indicating when it is partially or completely obscured by a coin. The coin is held in a stationary position on the coin support passageway 12 by the coin locking device 18 while in close proximity to the magnetic coin ejection device 19.

The magnetic coin removing device 19 is a technical field in this field for removing ferromagnetic coins or other ferromagnetic objects from the coin sorting machine so that they are not attracted by other magnets in the coin sorting machine. permanent magnets or other means widely known in the art. After a predetermined period of time after the coin is sensed by the coin arrival sensing device 28, a solenoid (not shown) for controlling the coin locking device 18 is actuated to remove the coin locking device 18 from the coin path; The coin is lowered along the coin support path 12. In this case, if the coin is ferromagnetic, the magnetic coin removal device 19 prevents the coin from moving downward along the coin support path 12. In order to remove ferromagnetic coins from a coin sorter, any one of several mechanisms that have been proposed can be selected and used.
An example of such a mechanism is a magnetic coin ejecting device described in Misaki Patent Application No. 22735, which is currently pending. A coin released from coin lock 18 is accelerated or decelerated in some manner depending on its physical attributes.

In the embodiment described herein, the coin released from the coin locking device 18 rolls down on the coin support passage 12 and is stopped by the eddy current generated by the magnet 20. Pass through a magnetic field. This eddy current braking magnet 20 is a permanent magnet or an electromagnet, and is placed on one side of the coin support passage 12. It is completely enclosed by a second magnet or plate (not shown) made of a ferromagnetic material, such as mild steel, transversely disposed directly opposite the eddy current damping magnet 20.

When the coin moves within the magnetic field, the eddy currents induced inside the coin magnetically interact with the eddy current damping magnet 20,
A deceleration force is applied to this coin.

The magnitude of the deceleration force applied to the coin is directly proportional to the speed at which the coin enters the magnetic field and the electrical conductivity of the coin. However, the strength of this magnetic field is preferably such that it reduces the intended rate of coin passage through the coin sorter by 10-50%. The change in velocity of the coin as it passes through such a magnetic field is one indicator of whether the coin is acceptable. In this embodiment, a magnetic field is applied to the coin by the magnet 20 to decelerate the movement of the coin, but a coin propulsion device that generates a magnetic field that accelerates the movement of the coin can be used instead. .

Such a coin propulsion device for generating a magnetic field for accelerating coins is well known, for example, the one disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 45-2289.
There is one disclosed in Publication No. 1. This coin propulsion device generates a magnetic field that moves along the coin path,
This moving magnetic field accelerates the coin's motion. Therefore, the embodiment of accelerating the coin is not described in detail herein, since the means for such acceleration are already well known, and the 0 deceleration of the coin is changed to the 0 acceleration. It is merely a matter of design that can be done without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims herein.

The coin that has passed by the eddy current braking magnet 20 passes between coin presence/absence sensing means 21 consisting of a light source (not shown) and a group of sensing devices disposed on opposite sides of the coin support passage 12, At this time, the coin's acceptability and face value are determined. The coin presence/absence sensing means 21 comprising this group of sensing devices will be described in detail later. The coin that has passed through the sensing device group leaves the coin support passage 12 while rolling and falls toward the coin receiving gate 22. The coin receiving gate 22 is actuated by a solenoid and extends into the coin passage. When the coin presence/absence sensing means 21 and the logic circuit described below work together to determine that the coin passing through the coin sorting machine cannot be accepted, the coin receiving gate 22 is moved to the coin passage. Therefore, the coin hits the coin receiving gate 22 and jumps into the coin rejection passage 24. When it is determined that an acceptable coin has passed by the coin sensing device group through the cooperation of a coin presence/absence sensing means 21 consisting of a coin sensing device group and a logic circuit, a signal is transferred to the gate solenoid. . This allows the coin receiving gate 22 to be removed from the coin passage. Since it is retracted, the coin falls into the coin receiving passage 23. Next, the coin presence/absence sensing means (hereinafter simply referred to as the coin sensing device group) will be explained with reference to FIG. Group 21 is schematically illustrated.

The coin sensing device group 21 is designed to be able to discriminate between coins having at least four different face values. To simplify the explanation, let's take as an example the case where the four types of coins are US currency 5 cents, 10 cents, 25 cents, and 50 cents coins. The coin sensing device group 21 is separated from one main sensing device 42)
It includes a pair of sub-sensing devices 44 and 46 disposed,
The coin sensing device group 21 as a whole is connected to the coin support passage 12.
It is fixed in a fixed position relative to the

In general, even true coins of one denomination have slight variations in their dimensions, making them slightly different from each other.

This is because it may be due to manufacturing errors or wear due to use. Therefore, this variation must be taken into account when inspecting coin dimensions. Here, we will discuss 1.
It sets the maximum and minimum diameters that are allowed for coins of three denominations. The secondary sensing device 46 is connected to the main sensing device 42 by
(1) The smallest diameter coin with an acceptable face value, i.e. 10 cents - The coin support path with the largest diameter coin just shielding the main sensing device 42 by its right edge. A coin that is larger than the chord length of this 10 cent coin along the line connecting the primary sensing device 42 and the secondary sensing device 46 when it is placed on the 12, and (2) has an acceptable face value. When a coin with the second smallest inner diameter, that is, the largest diameter five cent coin, is placed on the coin support passage 12 with its right edge just shielding the main sensing device 42, The sensing device 42 and the sub-sensing device 46 are spaced apart from each other by a distance smaller than the string length of a five-cent coin along the line connecting the sensing device 42 and the sub-sensing device 46.

The main sensing device 42 and the sub sensing device 46 are connected to the coin support passage 1
The distance between the main sensing device 42 and the sub-sensing device 46 and the coin support passage 12 is the minimum diameter of a coin that can be accepted, that is, the diameter of a 10 cent coin. smaller than On the other hand, the second secondary sensing device 44 detects from the primary sensing device 42 that (1) the second largest diameter coin with an acceptable face value, i.e., the largest diameter 25 cent coin, is located on its right edge; The coin support passage 12 is in a state where the main sensing device 42 is just shielded by the section.
The coin with the largest diameter larger than the chord length of this 25 cent coin along the line connecting the primary sensing device 42 and the secondary sensing device 44 when resting on it, and yet with an acceptable face value, i.e. 50 cents●When the coin with the smallest diameter is placed on the coin support passage 12 with its right edge just shielding the main sensing device 42, the line connecting the main sensing device 42 and the sub-sensing device 44 The 50-cent octopuses are spaced apart by a distance smaller than the chord length of the coin.

A sub-sensing device 44 is also disposed above the coin support path 12, and the distance between the sub-sensing device 44 and the coin support path 12 is set to the second smallest diameter coin among the acceptable coins, that is, 5 cents. Greater than the diameter of the largest coin, but smaller than the diameter of the second largest coin with an acceptable face value, the smallest twenty-five cent coin. Of the three primary and secondary sensing devices 42, 44, 46, the secondary sensing device 44 is never obstructed by a 10 cent coin or even a 5 cent coin, but by a 25 cent coin and a 50 cent coin.
In addition, the primary sensing device 42 and secondary sensing device 44 are simultaneously blocked by a 50 cent coin, but not simultaneously by a 25 cent coin. In other words, it is possible that during a period when secondary sensing device 44 is obscured by a 50 cent coin, primary sensing device 42 will also be obscured by the 50 cent coin, but not by a 25 cent coin. This is not possible with coins. Similarly, the secondary sensing device 46 is shielded by all coins it can accept, and the secondary sensing device 46 and the primary sensing device 42 are blocked by three coins or five coins.
It is simultaneously shielded by the cent◆ coin, the 25 cent● coin, and the 50 cent coin, but it is not simultaneously shielded by the smallest diameter coin, that is, the 10 cent coin. By using relatively simple logic circuits as described below, the information emitted from these primary sensing devices 42 and secondary sensing devices 44, 46 can be used to identify all coins of five types: (a) these primary sensing devices 44, 46; a coin having a size sufficient to simultaneously shield all of the device 42 and the secondary sensing devices 44, 46; (b) sensing selected two of the primary sensing device 42 and the secondary sensing devices 44, 46; a device of sufficient size to shield the device and, when at least one of the two sensing devices is unshielded, a third sensing device of sufficient size to shield the third sensing device; (c) a main sensing device 42 and two sub-sensing devices 44;
A coin that is large enough to simultaneously shield one of the 46 sub-sensors, but not large enough to simultaneously shield the other sub-sensing device at any point in time; (d) high position; Although it is not large enough to shield the secondary sensing device located at the lower position, it is large enough to shield the main sensing device 42 and the secondary sensing device located at a lower position sequentially rather than simultaneously. (e) Coins that are so large that they cannot block any sensing device. A particular logic circuit 47 is illustrated in FIG. 3 as an example, although a wide variety of combinational or logic circuits may be used to achieve the desired results.

The function of the logic circuit 47 can be understood by referring to the coin sensing signal table shown in FIG.
The logic circuit 47 has four mutually identical gates 48, 50,
52, 54 and two bistable multivibrators or flip-flops 56, 58 are used. Said gate 4
8, 50, 52, and 54 each represent one type of acceptable coin and are set to produce one output signal when all input signals thereto have a high level. Furthermore, each gate 48, 50, 5
2, 54 is a main sensing device 42 for sensing the attributes of the coin.
and corresponds to the signals emitted from the sub-sensing devices 44 and 46, as well as the signals emitted from the flip-flop 56. To simplify the explanation, the signals emitted from the main sensing device 42 and the sub-j sensing devices 44, 46 are based on the assumption that the main sensing device 42 and the sub-j sensing devices 44, 46 are not shielded and receive light from a light source. It is assumed that the level is high when the main sensing device 42 and the sub sensing devices 44, 46 are shielded by the coin, and that the level is low when the main sensing device 42 and the sub sensing devices 44, 46 are shielded by the coin. Considering first the gate 48 that accommodates a 50 cent coin, the gate 48 has a coin support passageway that is large enough to block all of the primary sensing device 42 and secondary sensing devices 44, 46. It will be appreciated that a low level signal is generated only when passing over 12.

The outputs from each of the main sensing device 42 and the secondary sensing devices 44, 46 are transferred to inverters 60, 62, 64, respectively, and from there to the input end of the gate 48. The fourth input to gate 48 comes from a flip-flop 56 which is set by the signal from sub-sensor 44. Main sensing device 42 and sub sensing devices 44, 4
6 generate high level signals before they are shielded by the coin, so that the inverters 60, 6
2,64, a low level signal is applied to the input of the gate 48. Furthermore, when a coin is inserted into the coin sorting machine 10 and a signal is emitted from the coin arrival sensing device 28, the flip-flop 56, which is reset by this signal, for example, is activated by the sub-sensing device 44 by the coin. The proper signal will not be applied to the input of gate 48 until this flip-flop 56 is set. When a large coin moves along the coin support path 12 after passing through the eddy current damping magnet 20, the secondary detection device 44 is first blocked by the coin. This causes flip-flop 56 to connect to input cathode line 6 of gate 48.
6 and generates a high level signal on input cathode line 68 by inverter 62. The coin then shields the secondary sensing device 46 and causes the inverter 64 to generate a high level signal on the input cathode line 70, then shields the main sensing device 42 and causes the inverter 60 to generate a high level signal on the input cathode line 72. generate.

The state in which four high-level signals are simultaneously input to the four input terminals of the gate 48 means that the main sensing device 42 and the sub-sensing devices 44 and 46 are all blocked at the same time (see FIG. 4).
A low level signal is generated on the output cathode line 74 of the gate 48 until the trailing edge of the coin has passed the first sub-sensing device 44 . Therefore, the output cathode line 7
The low level signal on 4 is the main sensing device 42 and the sub sensing device 4.
This indicates that a coin having a size sufficient to simultaneously cover all of the coins 4 and 46 has passed through the coin sensing device group 21. ), the coin is classified as a 50 cent coin. Similarly, the condition in which high level signals are simultaneously present on the four input cathode lines of gate 50 means that the coin is large enough to block secondary sensing device 44 and therefore flip-flop 56 is triggered. ,
Although it has a size sufficient to simultaneously shield the main sensing device 42 and the sub-sensing device 46, it can also shield the sub-sensing device 44 while the main sensing device 42 and the sub-sensing device 46 are being shielded. This only occurs when the size is not large enough. This is because the output emitted from the sub-sensing device 44 is transferred directly to the gate 50 rather than via the inverter 62, but the outputs emitted from the sub-sensing device 46 and the main sensing device 42 are transferred to the inverter 64 before reaching the gate 50, respectively. , 60. Next, consider the gate 52 that displays a coin coin equivalent to a 5 cent ● coin. A high level signal will be generated on the incoming cathode line 76 emerging from the flip-flop 56 only if the flip-flop 56 is not set by the coin shielding the secondary sensing device 44. - because the output sent from flip-flop 56 to gate 52 is the opposite of the output transferred to gates 48,50. Furthermore, since the output signal from the secondary sensing device 44 is transferred directly to the input cathode line 78 without going through the inverter 62, a high voltage is generated on the input cathode line 78 only when the secondary sensing device 44 is unshielded. It will be appreciated that level signals are generated.Input cathode lines 80, 82, corresponding to secondary sensing device 46 and primary sensing device 42, respectively, connect these sensing devices to inverters 64, 42, respectively.
60, they will have high level signals at the same time only if these secondary sensing devices 46 and primary sensing device 42 are simultaneously shielded. A similar explanation could be made regarding gate 54.

That is, in the gate 54, the secondary sensing device 44 is not shielded at all and a high level signal is generated on the lead wire 76 from the flip-flop 56, and the main sensing device 42 and the secondary sensing device 4 are not shielded at all.
4 only if simultaneous shielding of 6 does not occur.
Two inputs receive high level signals. Gates 52 and 54 have fifth inputs 84 and 86, respectively, from flip-flop 58. The purpose of this input end is to detect that a coin having a diameter at least equal to the height from the coin support passageway 12 to the secondary sensing device 46 has passed through the coin sorter, in other words to shield the secondary sensing device 46. It is possible to indicate that the coin has passed.
The gate 54 is activated when a state occurs in which neither the main sensing device 42 nor the sub-sensing devices 44 and 46 are shielded; however, in such a state, no coin passes through the coin sorting machine 10. Occurs even if you don't. Therefore, even if a coin passes, none of the sensing devices 42, 44, and 46 are shielded at all, and a coin does not pass through anything and all of the sensing devices 42, 44, and 46 are completely shielded. It is necessary to classify the occurrence of unshielded conditions. To this end, when a coin is put into the coin sorting machine 10, a coin arrival detection device (not shown) sends a signal to the terminal 310 indicating that the coin has arrived at the system, and first resets the flip-flop 58. do. Due to this reset, the output of the flip-flop 58 is at a low level. When the coin reaches and blocks sensing device 46, flip-flop 58 is set and its output goes high, producing high level signals at inputs 84 and 86 of gates 52 and 54. Accordingly, the gates 52 and 54 are activated when a coin that shields the secondary detector 46 arrives at the coin sorter and satisfies the other conditions described above. Therefore, the low level signal on the output cathode line 92 of the gate 54 is of a magnitude to shield the sensing device 46 but not large enough to shield the sensing device 44 and
and 42 at the same time has passed through the sensing device group 21. The 10 cent coin falls within this coin◆size range.

What should be noted here is that the coincidence gates 48, 50, 52, 5
It is relatively inaccurate to determine the authenticity and face value of a coin with just an output of 4. This is because the range of coin sizes that satisfy the output generation conditions of each coincidence gate is relatively wide. Therefore, for accurate determination, it is necessary to further test the acceptance ratio as described below. gate 4
Output cathode lines 74, 88 from 8, 50, 52, 54,
90 and 92 each lead to a gate 94 which generates a high level signal when the signal on any of its input leads 74, 88, 90 or 92 is low.

The output signal from gate 94 is applied to flip-flop 58 via differentiator circuit 95 and OR gate 96. Flip-flop 58 is reset as soon as the high level output signal from gate 94 indicates that it has been deactivated by the completion of the coin size sort signal. As mentioned above, flip-flop 58 is also reset by a signal on terminal 30 from the coin incoming device indicating that a coin has been placed into the device. The output signal from gate 94 is also sent to the acceptance ratio check stage of combinational circuit 47, as described below.

In addition to the leads 74, 88, 90 and 92 leading to the gate 94, the corresponding leads 7C, 882
, 9'' and 92'' are flip-flops 102, 104
, 106 and 108 to provide actuation signals to each of them. Coin too small or sensing device 46
When the sensing device 46 is not shielded by the coin because the coin has not been reached, the leads 74'', 88'', 9'', and 9
2''. FIG. 3 also shows the various sensing devices forming the coin characteristic sensing device group 21 for determining whether an acceptable coin has passed through the device. 1 shows a logic circuit that compares a signal generated by a predetermined signal with a predetermined signal.

Four flip-flops 102, 104, 106 and 108 are provided corresponding to the acceptable coins, in this case 50 cents, 25 cents, 5 cents and 10 cents, respectively, and their outputs indicate that the passing coin is true. It indicates which type (currency unit) it is.

Match gates 48 corresponding to these flip-flops
, 50, 52, and 54 are the aforementioned leads 74'', 8'', 9'', and 92''. Lead wire 74
The low level signal on any one of ``, 88'', 9'', and 92'' partially passes through the flip-flops 102, 1
Activate one of 04, 106 and 108. Since only one of these output cathode lines has a low level signal at a particular time, the other three remaining flip-flops are inactive. Each of the 5 flip-flops 102, 104, 106, and 108 is connected to a decoder 110 receiving a signal from a counter 112, respectively.

The clock circuit 114 sends clock pulses to the lead wire 115.
is applied to coincidence gate 116 by θ. Only during the period when all other three inputs of the match gate 116 are at high level (i.e. during the S-R period in FIG. 4), the clock pulse passes through the match gate 116 and is input to the counter 112 via the inversion circuit 119. is input. The counter 112 counts the clock pulses that have passed through the coincidence gate 116, and the counting result is transmitted to the lead wire 115 of the coincidence gate 116.
corresponds to the length of time during which the other three inputs of are at a high level. Lead 117 which is the input of match gate 116
The upper signal is the output of the flip-flop 58, and when a coin of an appropriate size passes through the sensing device group 21, the sensing device 4
If 6 is shielded, it becomes a high level signal. The signal on lead 118, which is the input of match gate 116, is input to decoder 1.
10 and indicates an overflow signal and is usually at a high level. The decoder 110 receives the count value signal of the counter 112, and when the counter 112 reaches the highest count value that an allowable coin would have, the lead wire 110
8 to automatically match the match gate 116.
is deactivated so that no more clock pulses are input to the counter 112. This is to prevent the counter 112 from recycling. The clock pulses are converted by circuit 119 into positive and negative pulses. These clock pulses are out of phase with each other. The positive pulses are applied to counter 112 and the negative pulses are directed to decoder 110 to trigger the decoder to read the count value of counter 112 upon the change of state between the high and low levels of the positive pulse. For example, the counter 112 counts the clock when the positive pulse changes from a low level to a high level, and the decoder 110 counts the clock when the positive pulse changes from a high level to a low level.
Read the count value. That is, counting and reading are performed during one clock cycle. Ru. For the four coins mentioned in this example, the decoder has four sets of output signals.

Each pair is a signal corresponding to a higher count value and a lower count value for a particular coin! Ru. Since true coins of a certain face value also have some variation in their dimensions, it is necessary to provide a certain width for the count value of the counter depending on the type of coin. The lower count corresponds to the lower dimensional limit of allowable coins of a particular denomination, and the higher count corresponds to the upper limit. With respect to this variation in dimensions, the lower limit of the dimensions of allowable coins of a certain face value is defined as the minimum allowable value, and the upper value is defined as the maximum allowable value. counter 1
When the contents of 12 exceed the lower count value, the lower count signal is output from the decoder 110. counter 11
When the content of 2 exceeds the higher count value, the higher count value signal is output from the decoder 110. Each of these signal sets is connected to a lip flop 102, 104, 10
6 and 108, the lower count signal sets the associated flip-flop and the higher count signal resets the associated flip-flop. Therefore, if the coin that has passed through the sensing device group 21 corresponds to an allowable coin, the decoder sets the flip-flop corresponding to the allowable coin, but does not reset the corresponding flip-flop again. It will remain set. The fourth actuation signal to each flip-flop is the signal on common lead 120 from the output of coincidence gate 116, if gate 116 has all four inputs indicating the passage of an accepted coin, i.e. It will not be activated unless it is at a high level. This prevents the flip-flop from setting if the counter or decoder is accidentally triggered by a stray signal. In this embodiment, the decoder 110 sets the digital count value of the counter 112 to one of eight predetermined values (higher and lower count values for four types of coins) preset in the decoder. When they are compared and match, a signal is generated at the corresponding output cathode. In this way, for example, coin 5 (
1′, and the transit time for coin 10[F] from the time it leaves the secondary sensing device 46 until it reaches the primary sensing device, for example. Circuits 60, 64, 52, 54, 9
4, 116, 114, 112, and the measured value and the standard value of the time or transit time of this simultaneous presence are connected to the circuit 1.
10, 106 and 108 to generate an acceptable coin output signal.

10 cents, 5 cents, 25 cents or 50 cents as above
When a coin of a size corresponding to any of the cent coins passes through the coin sorter 10, the gate 116 is activated and a positive pulse train is supplied to the counter 112. The number of pulses in the pulse train is proportional to the time period during which the gate 94 is activated, i.e. from point S to point R in FIG. 4, i.e. proportional to the size of the coin and inversely proportional to the speed of movement of the coin passing through the device do. gate 48 activating gate 94;
As soon as 50, 52 or 54 becomes inoperative, gate 11
6 is inactive and the counter stops receiving pulses. Looking at the sensing device signal sequence in FIG. 4, it shows the times when flip-flops 102, 104, 106 and 108 are activated for accepted coins.

This is indicated by a dashed line in the signal sequence diagram. If the count of pulses in the set and reset time interval is equal to the predetermined tolerance of allowed coins, indicated by the flip-flop to be activated by determining the coin size, then the flip-flop is set as is. ).
A set flip-flop emits a signal indicating that a coin of acceptable chord length and velocity has passed through the device, and indicates the face value (in monetary units) of that coin. As mentioned above, the count value indicates the size and speed of the coin, and the speed of the conductive non-ferromagnetic coin after passing through the magnet 20 is related to the acceptance ratio of the coin. This test is an accurate means of determining the authenticity and denomination of a moving coin. Since only one of flip-flops 102, 104, 106, 108 can be set at a time, no ambiguity arises. The signal generated from the activated flip-flop is transferred to coin receiving means 122. The coin receiving means 122 includes a coin receiving solenoid (
(not shown) to remove the coin receiving gate 22 from the coin passageway and drop the coin into the coin receiving passageway 23. If none of the flip-flops 102, 104, 106, 108 are activated until the coin reaches the coin receiving gate 22, the coin will hit the coin receiving gate 22 and jump into the coin rejection passage 24. Dew. In addition to the signal being transferred to the coin receiving means 122 by the activated flip-flop, a signal is also sent to a conventional pulse generator 124. The pulse generator 124 receives the signal and sends a weighted signal to a conventional binary accumulator 126.
The weighted signal is determined by the specific flip signal being activated.
It represents a flop. For example, the pulse generator 12
4 is a flip-flop 1 corresponding to a 5 cent coin
When 08 is activated, it generates one pulse and 1
Flip-flop 106 corresponding to 0 cent coin
When the flip-flop 104 is activated, it generates two pulses, corresponding to a 25 cent coin, and when activated, it generates five pulses, corresponding to a 50 cent coin. If flip-flop 102 is activated it will generate ten pulses. Separately, the pulse generator 124 applies five pulses to the 50 cent◆coin, which has a weighted value that is ten times as large as the weighted value of the 5 cent◆coin. It would also be possible to feed it into the second stage of the hexadecimal accumulator 126. It has been conventional practice to connect an accumulator to a coin-operated device 128 such that the device is activated when a predetermined amount of coins are inserted into the device.
The gate 130 for deactivating the pulse generator 124 is connected to a pair of input cathode lines, the first input cathode line 1 carrying the high value deactivation signal out of the accumulator 126.
32 and the main sensing device 42 included in the coin sensing device group 21
and a second incoming cathode line extending from the second input cathode line. The first incoming cathode line 132 deactivates the pulse generator 124 when the accumulator 126 has registered a predetermined maximum amount, such as the price of the most expensive item contained within the coin-operated device 128. Accumulator 1
A high value deactivation lead 134, similar to the input cathode wire 132, is connected to the gate 136 to prevent the acceptance of any coins after 26 has registered a predetermined maximum value.
If another coin is additionally inserted into the coin sorter after the accumulator 126 has reached its maximum value, that coin will be rejected and placed into the coin returner. be returned. The signal emitted from the main detector 42 is transmitted to the pulse generator 124 in order to deactivate the pulse generator 124 until the coin is completely removed from the main detector 42.
supplied to

Therefore, the pulse generator device 124 is the flip-flop 1.
Before examining each of the coins 02, 104, 106, and 108, the counter 112 completely registers the appropriate count value for the coin in question. This means that during the period when counter 112 is still recording the velocity of the coin, pulse generator 124
would preclude checking the signal sent out from one of the flip-flops. Although the above description has been made in relation to the coin sensing device group 21 having one main sensing device 42 and two sub-sensing devices 44 and 46, this embodiment is modified to use only one sub-sensing device. Alternatively, three or more can be used.

Each sub-sensing device is capable of accurately distinguishing at least two types of coins that are substantially the same size but substantially different. Each sub-sensing device is a main sensing device 42
The secondary sensing device has the ability to work with more than one coin to examine two or more coins, but the secondary sensing device is combined with the primary sensing device to minimize the time required to examine the speed of the coin to achieve the highest accuracy. Preferably, it is positioned relative to device 42.

Returning to FIG. 2, for example, the sub-sensing device 44
and main sensing device 42 could be used to examine the velocity of all coins greater than the spacing between them, ie, 5 cents, 25 cents, and 50 cents. However, the time required to examine the speed of the 25 cent◆ coin and the 50 cent coin would be unreasonably long, and the accuracy of operation of the coin sorter 10 would be reduced. The accuracy of coin sorter 10 is greatly increased by the addition of one or more secondary sensing devices 44 which provide the ability to more closely examine the acceptance ratio and string length of two large coins. For the explanation given while referring to the attached drawings! In this case, the sub-sensing devices are placed upstream and the main sensing device is placed downstream based on the coin's movement direction, but the order of these sensing devices can be reversed by changing the logic circuit. It would also be possible to do so.

Finally, the array of coin sensing devices described herein can be used not only to determine conductive non-ferromagnetic coins in devices such as those described above, but also to determine the velocity of a coin or metal in motion. It is understood that it may also be used in other devices capable of identifying such coins or metals, where the above-mentioned values vary depending on factors related to the coin's face value and authenticity. Good morning.

゛Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a simplified front side view of a coin sorting machine constructed in accordance with the present invention for determining the true shadow and face value of coins, and Figure 2 shows various types of coin sorting machines. A simplified side view of a group of sensing devices to show the location of the individual sensing devices for different representative coin diameters. FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram of a combinational circuit that works with the group of sensing devices shown in FIG. This is a diagram.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 A device for determining the authenticity and face value of coins of a plurality of denominations, which device includes: a path through which the coins pass; a main sensing device 42; a predetermined signal from the main sensing device in the direction of movement of the coin at least one spaced apart by a distance of
one secondary sensing device (e.g. 46 mm), where the predetermined distance between the sensing devices is such that the edge of the coin having the minimum allowable value among the diameters of coins of one permissible denomination (e.g. 5 mm) is connected to the main sensing device. , the chord length of the coin along the line connecting the sensing devices is longer than the spacing between the sensing devices, and the coin has the maximum allowable diameter of a coin of another allowable denomination (for example, 10 cm). When the edge of the coin is at the main sensing device, the chord length of the coin along the line connecting the sensing devices is determined to be shorter than the spacing between the sensing devices; a coin support passage 12 defining the passage; means (e.g. 20) for generating a magnetic field in the coin passageway upstream of the sensing device to vary the speed of the coin according to its electromagnetic properties; the main sensing device; and a means for measuring the time period of simultaneous presence of the passing coin at the sub-sensing device (e.g. 60, 64, 52,
94, 116, 114, 112), the coin transit time from when the coin leaves one of the main sensing devices to when the coin reaches the other of the main sensing devices (e.g. 54,9
4,116,114,112) and when there is simultaneous existence of coins in the main sensing device and the secondary sensing device, the standard value and the measured value of the simultaneous existence period for the one allowable denomination (for example, 5■) If not, compare the measured value of transit time with a standard value for the other allowed face value (for example, 10 ■), and take action if the measured value is within a predetermined tolerance of the standard value. Means for generating acceptable coin output signals for denominations (e.g., 110, 106, 1
08).