TWI839927B - Self-service payment kiosk having banknote change function and banknote change method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A self-service payment kiosk having banknote change function and a banknote change method thereof are disclosed. The self- service payment kiosk includes machine shell, circulation machine, banknote dispenser and banknote change controller. The circulation machine, the banknote dispenser and the banknote change controller are disposed in the machine interior space. The circulation machine stores the payment banknotes input by the user in the banknote temporary storage area. The banknote dispenser stores a preset amount of change notes. The banknote change controller controls the switch between the banknote dispenser and the circulation machine. The banknote dispenser is the preset device to provide the change amount. When the banknote temporary storage area reaches the high setting capacity, the change amount will be provided by the circulation machine instead. When the banknote temporary storage area drops to the low setting capacity, it switches back to the banknote dispenser to provide the change amount.

Description

Self-service payment machine with change function and its change method

The present invention relates to a self-service payment machine with a change function and a change method thereof, and in particular to a self-service payment machine capable of switching the change source and a change method thereof.

In existing self-service payment machines, a paper bill recycling machine can be set up to provide a change function, and the number of circulating bills for each denomination is fixed and equal. However, in actual use, people are accustomed to putting large-denomination bills into the machine for change, which makes the number of bills with different denominations to be found out seriously unevenly. The number of bills of commonly used denominations is quickly consumed, causing the payment machine to be unable to make change, affecting the payment function of the machine.

For example, the self-service payment machines in hospitals generally charge a total of NT$500 for outpatient visits. When paying, people are used to inserting NT$1,000 bills and letting the machine give them change. As a result, there is a large demand for NT$100 bills (for example, if the payment amount is NT$520, NT$480 needs to be given back after inserting NT$1,000 bills, which means four NT$100 bills need to be given back). The NT$100 bill inventory level drops rapidly, causing the self-service payment machines to be unable to continue operating due to insufficient NT$100 bills, which in turn affects their efficiency. The paper bill recycling machine originally installed in the self-service payment machine has a recycling space capacity of 90 bills. According to the above example, at the beginning of business, even if the paper banknote recycling machine is fully stocked with 100-dollar bills, assuming the payment amount remains unchanged, when people all pay with 1,000-dollar bills, the number of transactions that can be made is about 22. Assuming that each payment takes 1-2 minutes, the self-service payment machine will be unable to operate after about 30-40 minutes. According to actual field tests, during the peak payment period (such as Monday morning), the average operation time of each self-service payment machine will not exceed 2 hours.

In view of this, the current self-service payment machine's device and change method have their limitations. In order to improve the machine's use efficiency, the inventor of this invention has thought about and designed a self-service payment machine with a change function and a change method thereof, aiming to improve the deficiencies of the existing technology and thereby promote its implementation and utilization in the industry.

In view of the above-mentioned problems of the known technology, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a self-service payment machine with a change function and a change method thereof, so as to solve the problem that the known self-service payment machine needs to be frequently replenished and does not have the ability to operate for a long time.

According to one purpose of the present invention, a self-service payment machine with a change function is provided, which includes a machine housing, a recycling machine, a bill dispensing machine and a change controller. The machine housing includes an operation interface and an internal space of the machine, and the operation interface is provided with a bill receiving port and a bill dispensing port. The recycling machine is arranged in the internal space of the machine and connected to the bill receiving port and the bill dispensing port. The bill receiving port receives payment bills inserted by the user and stores the payment bills in a bill storage area of corresponding denominations according to the type of the payment bills. The bill dispensing machine is arranged in the internal space of the machine and connected to the bill dispensing port. The bill dispensing machine and the recycling machine are independently arranged to store a preset number of change bills. The change controller is installed inside the machine. It is connected to the operation interface, circulation machine and bill dispenser respectively. The change controller calculates the change amount based on the payment bills put in, and sets a switch to control the bill outlet to output the change bills from the bill dispenser or the payment bills from the circulation machine to provide the change amount. Among them, the change controller is preset to provide the change amount by the change bills of the bill dispensing machine until the payment bills in the bill temporary storage area reach the set high storage amount, and then the change amount is changed to the payment bills of the circulation machine through the switch. When the payment bills in the bill temporary storage area continue to be output and drop to the set low storage amount, it is switched back to the change bills of the bill dispensing machine to provide the change amount.

Preferably, the self-service payment machine with change function can further include an independent cash box, which is set in the internal space of the machine. The independent cash box is connected to the recycling machine. When the temporary storage amount of each bill storage area reaches the storage limit, the subsequent payment bills received will be pressed into the independent cash box.

Preferably, the self-service payment machine with change function can further include a coin machine, which is set in the internal space of the machine. The coin machine is connected to the coin input port and the coin output port of the operation interface. The coin input port receives the payment coins of the user and stores them in the coin machine according to the coin type. When the banknote issuing machine and the recycling machine are out of paper money, the change amount is output by the coin machine to the coin output port.

Preferably, the bill outlet and coin output port can be provided with a change slot to accommodate paper bills or coins of change amount.

Preferably, the change controller is provided with a network connection device, and payment information is received through the network connection device.

According to one purpose of the present invention, a method for making change for a self-service payment machine is provided, which is applicable to a self-service payment machine with a change function. The method for making change for a self-service payment machine comprises the following steps: setting up a self-service payment machine, the self-service payment machine comprising a machine housing, a recycling machine, a bill dispensing machine and a bill change controller, the machine housing comprising an operation interface and an internal space of the machine, the recycling machine, the bill dispensing machine and the bill change controller being arranged in the internal space of the machine; setting the bill dispensing machine as a default bill change device, the bill dispensing machine storing a preset amount of change paper bills; receiving the payment paper bills inserted by the user through the bill receiving port of the operation interface, and storing the payment paper bills in the recycling machine according to the type of the payment paper bills. The corresponding denomination paper bill storage area is used; the change amount is calculated by the bill change controller, the bill dispenser is controlled to output the change paper bill, and the change amount is provided at the bill outlet of the operation interface; it is judged whether the paper bill storage area has reached the set high stock. If so, the switch of the bill change controller changes to the payment paper bill of the circulation machine to provide the change amount and proceed to the next step. If not, the bill dispenser continues to provide the change amount; it is judged whether the paper bill storage area has dropped to the set low stock. If so, the switch is switched again to the change paper bill of the bill dispenser to provide the change amount and return to the previous step. If not, the circulation machine continues to provide the change amount.

Preferably, when the temporary storage amount of banknotes in the banknote storage area reaches the storage limit, the payment banknotes received subsequently can be pressed into an independent purse.

Preferably, the self-service payment machine can further include a coin machine, which is installed in the internal space of the machine. The coin machine is connected to the coin input port and the coin output port of the operation interface. The coin input port receives the payment coins of the user and stores them in the coin machine according to the coin type. When the banknote issuing machine and the recycling machine are out of paper money, the change amount is output by the coin machine to the coin output port.

Preferably, the bill outlet and coin output port can be provided with a change slot to accommodate paper bills or coins of change amount.

Preferably, the change controller can receive payment information via a network connection device.

As mentioned above, the self-service payment machine with change function and its change method according to the present invention may have one or more of the following advantages:

(1) This self-service payment machine with change function and its change method can provide change paper bills from the paper bill storage area of the circulation machine through the switching between the circulation machine and the bill dispensing machine, so as to avoid the change paper bills in the bill dispensing machine running out quickly and needing to be replenished, thereby effectively improving the operation time of the self-service payment machine and improving the machine operation efficiency.

(2) This self-service payment machine with a change function and its change method can be applied to various payment types, environments and conditions. The settings of the cash dispenser and the circulation machine can be adjusted according to needs to meet the needs of various payment machines. It has sufficient flexibility and diversity in actual application.

(3) This self-service payment machine with change function and its change method can be used in conjunction with a coin machine to achieve the actual change effect, increasing the feasibility of machine operation.

10: Self-service payment machine

11: Machine housing

12,22:Inner space of the machine

13,23: Operation interface

14,24: Circulation machine

15,25: Money dispensing machine

16,26: Find the currency controller

27: Coin machine

131,231: Cash collection

132,232: Cash out

233: Coin input port

234: Display panel

235: Change slot

241: Paper money storage area

S11~S16,S21~S26: Steps

In order to make the technical features, contents and advantages of the present invention and the effects that can be achieved more obvious, the present invention is described in detail in the form of embodiments in conjunction with the attached figures: Figure 1 is a block diagram of a self-service payment machine with a change function in an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2A and Figure 2B are schematic diagrams of a self-service payment machine with a change function according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a flow chart of the method for finding banknotes in the self-service payment machine of the embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 4 is a flow chart of the cash change method of the self-service payment machine in another embodiment of the present invention.

In order to facilitate understanding of the technical features, content and advantages of the present invention and the effects that can be achieved, the present invention is described in detail as follows with accompanying drawings and in the form of embodiments. The drawings used therein are only for illustration and auxiliary description purposes, and may not be the true proportions and precise configurations after the implementation of the present invention. Therefore, the proportions and configurations of the attached drawings should not be interpreted or used to limit the scope of rights of the present invention in actual implementation.

All terms used herein (including technical and scientific terms) have the meanings commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs. It will be further understood that those terms as defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having meanings consistent with their meanings in the context of the relevant art and the present invention, and will not be interpreted as idealized or overly formal meanings unless expressly so defined herein.

Please refer to FIG. 1, which is a block diagram of a self-service payment machine with a change function according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the self-service payment machine with a change function 10 includes a machine housing 11, which can be a metal box structure, and a box frame can be set in the box to form a plurality of layers of machine internal space 12, and an operation interface 13 is set outside the box structure, and the operation interface 13 is provided with a bill receiving port 131 and a bill discharging port 132. The operation interface 13 is the interface for the user to operate the machine. A display device and operation buttons can be set. The user can input payment information through the operation buttons, and the payment amount will be displayed on the display device. Then, the user can pay by inserting payment paper bills from the bill receiving port 131. When the payment amount is greater than the amount payable, the bill output port outputs the change amount to the user to complete the self-service payment process. In other embodiments, the operation interface 13 can also be provided with a touch display screen as a device for providing operation and display.

To complete the self-service payment process of charging and making change, the self-service payment machine 10 is provided with a recycling machine 14, a bill dispensing machine 15 and a bill change controller 16 in the internal space 12 of the machine. The recycling machine 14 is provided in the internal space 12 of the machine and is connected to the bill receiving port 131 and the bill dispensing port 132. The bill receiving port 131 receives the payment bills inserted by the user and stores the payment bills in the corresponding denomination temporary storage area according to the type of the payment bills. The recycling machine 14 refers to a machine that can recycle received banknotes. It has a banknote recognition function and can classify banknotes of different denominations and store them in banknote temporary storage areas of corresponding denominations. For example, banknotes of denominations of one hundred yuan, five hundred yuan, one thousand yuan, and two thousand yuan can be stored in different locations respectively. An independent cash box can be set up and connected to the recycling machine 14. When the banknote temporary storage amount of one of the banknote temporary storage areas of various denominations reaches the storage upper limit, the payment banknotes of this denomination put in by the subsequent user will be directly pressed into the independent cash box to prevent the banknote temporary storage area of this denomination from exceeding the storage upper limit. The independent cash box can avoid the problem that there is no extra space to store bills after the bill storage area collects too many bills, and prevent the collection function from being affected. After the bills are collected, the storage space will not be messed up and cause problems in sorting the bills. The independent cash box can be set as a larger storage space for placing bills. Bills that exceed the storage capacity of the recycling machine, regardless of denomination, will be pressed into the independent cash box. Therefore, bills of various denominations will be stored in the independent cash box. After checking out, the operator can empty the independent cash box to prepare for pressing bills for subsequent operation of the self-service payment machine 10. In this embodiment, different banknote temporary storage areas may be set for banknotes of different denominations, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, since most of the change amounts are made with banknotes of 100 yuan, only banknote temporary storage areas of 100 yuan may be set.

After receiving the payment note inserted by the user, the recycling machine 14 can identify the denomination of the note and detect the payment amount inserted by the user. The payment amount will be transmitted to the calculation and processing device of the self-service payment machine 10. The calculation and processing device may include computer devices such as a processor, a memory, and a connecting cable. The payment information of the user is received through a network connection device, and the change amount is calculated based on the payment amount. When change is required, the corresponding note is output from the bill outlet 132.

In order to satisfy the change function of the self-service payment machine 10, a bill dispensing machine 15 is set in the part of the internal space 12 of the machine that is independent of the recycler 14. The bill dispensing machine 15 is only connected to the bill outlet 132 but not to the bill receiving port 131, and serves as a device for outputting paper bills. As mentioned above, the change amount is mainly in the form of 100-yuan bills, so a preset number of change paper bills, such as 900 100-yuan bills, can be stored in the bill dispensing machine 15 in advance. When the machine is running, it is set as a device for providing a preset change amount. That is, when the self-service payment machine 10 starts to operate, when a change is required, the change paper bills in the bill dispensing machine 15 will first provide the required change amount. Since the bill dispenser 15 is not connected to the bill receiving port, when the change paper bills stored in it are used up, they must be replenished manually. In order to reduce the replacement frequency, the circulation machine 14 is designed to be used as another source of change during operation. The frequency of replenishment and replacement is reduced by interactive matching, thereby extending the operation time of the self-service payment machine 10.

In this embodiment, the bill dispensing machine 15 can be set as a single-denomination bill dispensing machine, for example, storing the most commonly used 100-yuan bills, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the bill dispensing machine 15 can also be set as a multi-denomination bill dispensing machine, storing two or more different denominations of bills, for example, simultaneously providing 100-yuan bills, 200-yuan bills, and 500-yuan bills to provide bills required for change. The method of providing multiple denominations can be set according to the type of the bill dispensing machine 15. When the bill dispensing machine 15 is provided with a plurality of bill storage cassettes, bills of different denominations can be stored in different cassettes to achieve the effect of providing multiple denominations. If there is only a single cassette in the bill dispensing machine, it is possible to consider installing multiple bill dispensing machines 15, each of which provides bills of different denominations, so that bills of multiple denominations can be provided for change.

The change controller 16 is disposed in the internal space 12 of the machine. The change controller 16 is connected to the operation interface 13, the recycler 14 and the bill dispenser 15 respectively. The change controller 16 can be the aforementioned computing device, and switches between the recycler 14 and the bill dispenser 15 through software control switch. When the self-service payment machine 10 starts to operate, the change controller 16 calculates the change amount based on the payment paper bills received by the recycler 14 and the payment information of the user. At this time, the control signal of the change controller 16 controls the bill dispenser 15 to output the change paper bills of the corresponding amount, so that the user can retrieve the change amount from the bill outlet 132. The recycling machine 14 stores the received payment bills in the bill storage area.

A sensing device may be provided in the bill storage area to detect the amount of payment bills, such as using weight sensing, optical sensing or a counting device of the recycler 14 to determine the amount of bills in stock. When the self-service payment machine 10 continues to receive payments from users, the amount of bills in stock will gradually accumulate. When the accumulation reaches a set high storage amount of the bill storage area, such as 80% to 90% of the storage amount, a signal is sent to the bill change controller 16, and the software program of the bill change controller 16 sends a switching signal, switching to the recycler 14 to provide the change amount. The switching device can, for example, open or close the connection interface of the circulation machine 14 and the bill dispensing machine 15, and control its output device to output the corresponding number of bills. When the payment bills in the bill storage area continue to drop to the set low storage amount due to the change output, a signal is sent to the bill controller 16 again, and the software program of the bill controller 16 sends a switching signal to switch back to the change bills of the bill dispensing machine 15 to provide the change amount. The set low storage amount can be the storage amount of the low water level of the bill storage area, such as 1%~5% of the storage amount, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. In other embodiments, the set low storage amount can also be switched after the stock of the bill storage area is used up.

During the period when the change amount is provided by the recycling machine 14, if no change is required when paying, but the temporary storage area of the bills of one denomination continues to accumulate payment bills and reaches the storage limit, the bills of this denomination that the user subsequently puts in will be directly pressed into the independent cash box. At this time, since the storage amount of payment bills still exceeds the set high storage amount, the recycling machine 14 continues to provide change until the storage amount in the recycling machine 14 drops to the low water level due to the continuous use of bills. Then a signal is sent to the bill change controller 16 to switch back to the bill issuing machine 15 for change. Through the interactive use of the bill dispensing machine 15 and the circulation machine 14, the machine operation time can be effectively extended, the frequency of manual replacement and replenishment of the bill dispensing machine 15 can be reduced, and the operating efficiency of the payment machine can be improved.

Please refer to FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B, which are schematic diagrams of a self-service payment machine with a change function according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of the operation interface of the self-service payment machine, and FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of the internal space of the self-service payment machine. In FIG. 2A, the operation interface 23 is an interface for users to operate the machine, and the operation interface 23 is provided with a bill receiving port 231, a bill output port 232, a coin input port 233, and a display panel. The display panel 234 can be a touch display panel, and the user can click on the option in the panel to select the payment amount, and insert the payment paper bill from the bill receiving port 231, or insert the payment coin into the coin input port 233. After receiving the payment bill or payment coin, the self-service payment machine calculates whether change is required. If necessary, the bill or coin is output to the user through the bill outlet 232. The display panel 234 can also display the corresponding change amount to remind the consumer to open the bill outlet 232 to receive the change amount. In this embodiment, the coin output port can be combined with the bill outlet 232, and the change amount is provided at the same location, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. In other embodiments, the coin output port can also be set independently of the bill outlet 232.

In Figure 2B, the internal space 22 of the machine is equipped with a circulation machine 24, a bill dispensing machine 25, a change controller 26 and a coin machine 27. The circulation machine 24, the bill dispensing machine 25 and the coin machine 27 can be arranged on different shelves and connected to the change controller 26 through a line, and the change controller 26 controls the change operation. The change controller 26 can be a computer device including a processor, a memory, and a network connection device, and transmits control signals through the connection line to operate the circulation machine 24, the bill dispensing machine 25 and the coin machine 27.

The recycling machine 24 is connected to the bill receiving port 231 of the operation interface 23, receives the payment bills inserted by the user, and stores the payment bills in the corresponding denomination bill temporary storage area 241 according to the type of the payment bills. Similar to the above-mentioned embodiment, the recycling machine 14 can be connected to an independent cash box. When the temporary storage amount of bills of various denominations in the temporary storage area 241 of bills reaches the storage limit, the bills subsequently inserted by the user are pressed into the independent cash box. Similar to the recycling machine 24, the coin machine 27 can be connected to the coin input port 233 to receive payment coins inserted by the user and store them in the coin machine 27 according to the coin type. The coin machine 27 can also be similar to the setting of the recycling machine 24 as a source of change amount, and can also provide coins to meet the change amount when the denomination required for the change amount is insufficient. In other embodiments, the coin machine 27 can also be set up with a corresponding coin issuing machine, which pre-stores some commonly used change coins and switches with the coin machine 27 to meet the need for change coins.

The bill dispensing machine 25 is independent of the recycling machine 24 in the internal space 22 of the machine. The bill dispensing machine 25 is only connected to the bill dispensing port 232 but not to the bill receiving port 231. A preset number of change bills, such as 900 hundred-yuan bills, are stored in the bill dispensing machine 25 in advance. When the machine is in operation, it is set as a device for providing a preset change amount. In this embodiment, the output of the bill dispensing machine 25 and the output of the recycling machine 24 are also connected to the bill dispensing port 232. A change slot 235 can be set to allow the change bills or the temporarily stored bills to fall to the two sides of the change slot 235 respectively. When the user opens the bill dispensing port 232, no matter which one supplies the bills, the corresponding change amount can be taken out from the slot. Since the change slot 235 is provided, the output port of the coin machine 27 can also be connected to the change slot 235, outputting coins so that users can take them at the same time.

Similar to the above-mentioned embodiment, before the self-service payment machine is started, the change paper bills in the bill dispenser 25 will be replenished. When the machine starts to operate, the change amount paid by the user will be provided by the bill dispenser 25 by default. When the user continues to pay and the payment paper bills are accumulated in the paper bill temporary storage area 241 of the recycling machine 24, through the sensing device or the counting device, when the payment paper bills in the paper bill temporary storage area 241 reach the set high storage amount, a signal is sent to the bill controller 26, and the software controls the switching between the bill dispenser 25 and the recycling machine 24, and the change amount is provided by the paper bill temporary storage area 241 of the recycling machine 24. When the paper bills in the paper bill storage area 241 are consumed and fall to the set low storage amount, a signal is sent to the bill change controller 26, and the software controls the switching between the bill dispenser 25 and the recycling machine 24, and the bill dispenser 25 is again used to provide the change amount. By switching between the recycling machine 24 and the bill dispenser 25, the consumption rate of the change paper bills in the bill dispenser 25 can be reduced, avoiding the need to replenish the bills due to the storage of the bill dispenser 25 being used up in a short time, thereby increasing the operating time of the self-service payment machine.

Please refer to Figure 3, which is a flow chart of the self-service payment machine's change method in the embodiment of the present invention. The self-service payment machine's change method is applicable to the self-service payment machine with a change function in the aforementioned embodiment. The self-service payment machine's change method includes the following steps (S11~S16):

Step S11: Set up a self-service payment machine. The self-service payment machine includes a machine housing, a circulation machine, a bill dispensing machine, and a bill change controller. The machine housing includes an operation interface and an internal space of the machine. The circulation machine, the bill dispensing machine, and the bill change controller are arranged in the internal space of the machine. Please refer to the above-mentioned embodiment for the structure of the self-service payment machine, and the same content will not be repeated here.

Step S12: Set the cash dispenser as the default cash change device. A preset number of change bills are stored in the cash dispenser, and when the machine starts to operate with these change bills, the default cash change device provides the change amount.

Step S13: The bill receiving port of the operation interface receives the payment bills inserted by the user and stores them in the corresponding bill storage area of the recycling machine according to the type of the payment bills. When the self-service payment machine starts to operate, the user will insert the payment bills from the bill receiving port. These bills will be stored in the corresponding bill storage area after the recycling machine recognizes the denomination. The commonly used bill storage area will serve as another source of change amount. Similar to the above-mentioned embodiment, when the temporary storage amount of a banknote of a certain denomination reaches the storage limit, the payment banknotes of this denomination deposited by subsequent users will be directly pressed into an independent cash box to prevent the temporary storage amount of this denomination from exceeding the temporary storage limit.

Step S14: The change amount is calculated by the change controller, and the change paper bills are controlled to be outputted by the bill dispensing machine, and the change amount is provided at the bill outlet of the operation interface. After the circulation machine obtains the payment amount inputted by the user, the change controller calculates the change amount according to the payment information of the user. The payment information can be inputted by the user, or connected to the cloud server through a network connection device, and the payment information is captured from the database. After confirming the change amount, the change controller controls the bill dispensing machine to output the corresponding number of change paper bills to the bill outlet, so that the user can collect the change amount.

Step S15: Determine whether the paper bill storage area has reached the set high stock level. If so, proceed to step S16. If not, continue to use the bill dispenser to provide the change amount. While the self-service payment machine is operating, the change bills of the bill dispenser are continuously consumed, but the bill storage area of the recycling machine will continue to accumulate payment bills. When the payment bills in the bill storage area accumulate to the set high stock level, proceed to step S16 to switch the change source. If not, the bill dispenser will still provide the change amount and continue to monitor the accumulated amount in the bill storage area until the set high stock level is reached. The actual number for setting a high inventory can be set according to the payment location, payment content and payment habits, etc. It is not limited to a specific ratio. The reason for setting a high inventory is to allow the recycling machine to store a certain amount of paper bills before switching, so as to avoid frequent switching of the bill source and reduce the service life of the machine.

Step S16: Change the change amount to the payment bills of the recycling machine and proceed to step S17. After reaching the switching standard, the bill controller controls the switch to switch the source of the bills, and the payment bills are output from the bill storage area of the recycling machine as the source of bills to meet the change amount.

Step S17: Determine whether the paper bill storage area has dropped to the set low stock level. If so, the switcher will switch back to the change paper bills from the bill dispenser to provide the change amount and return to step S14. If not, the circulation machine will continue to provide the change amount. The stock level in the paper bill storage area will continue to drop after the bill is changed. When it drops to the set low stock level, the bill controller will control the switcher to switch the source of paper bills again, and the bill dispenser will be used to output the change paper bills as the source of bills to meet the change amount.

Please refer to Figure 4, which is a flow chart of the change method of the self-service payment machine of another embodiment of the present invention. The change method of the self-service payment machine is applicable to the self-service payment machine with the change function in the aforementioned embodiment. The change method of the self-service payment machine includes the following steps (S21~S26):

Step S21: Set up the self-service payment machine. The self-service payment machine includes a machine housing, a circulation machine, a bill dispensing machine, and a bill change controller. The machine housing includes an operation interface and an internal space of the machine. The circulation machine, the bill dispensing machine, and the bill change controller are arranged in the internal space of the machine. Please refer to the aforementioned embodiment for the structure of the self-service payment machine, and the same content will not be repeated here.

Step S22: Set the cash dispenser as a default cash change device. A preset number of change bills are stored in the cash dispenser, and when the machine starts to operate with these change bills, a default cash change device that provides the change amount is set.

Step S23: The bill receiving port of the operation interface receives the payment bills inserted by the user, and stores them in the corresponding bill storage area of the recycling machine according to the type of the payment bills. The coin input port receives the payment coins of the user, and stores them in the coin machine according to the type of coins. When the self-service payment machine starts to operate, the user will insert the payment bills from the bill receiving port. These bills will be stored in the corresponding bill storage area after the recycling machine recognizes the denomination. The bill storage area of commonly used denominations will serve as another source of change. In addition to paper money, users also put in payment coins from the coin slot. These coins are stored in the coin machine according to their different types to provide change amounts lower than the face value of the paper money, or to provide another source of change after the paper money runs out.

Step S24: The change amount is calculated by the change controller, and the change paper bills are controlled to be outputted from the bill dispensing machine. The change amount is provided at the bill outlet of the operation interface. When the bill dispensing machine and the recycling machine are out of paper bills, the change amount is outputted from the coin machine to the coin outlet. After the recycling machine and the coin machine obtain the payment amount inputted by the user, the change controller calculates the change amount according to the payment information of the user. After confirming the change amount, the change controller controls the bill dispensing machine to output the corresponding amount of change paper bills to the bill outlet. The part that is less than the face value of the paper bills is outputted from the coin outlet as coins, thereby satisfying the change amount. The bill outlet and coin output port may be provided with a change slot to hold paper bills or coins of change amount, so that the user can take the change amount at the same time. In another embodiment, if the bill dispenser and the recycling machine have no paper bills in stock, all the change amount is output as coins from the coin output port, so that the user can still receive the change amount.

Step S25: Determine whether the paper bill storage area has reached the set high stock. If so, proceed to step S26. If not, continue to use the bill dispenser to provide the change amount. While the self-service payment machine is operating, the change paper bills of the bill dispenser are continuously consumed, but the bill storage area of the recycling machine will continue to accumulate payment paper bills. When the payment paper bills in the bill storage area accumulate to the set high stock, proceed to step S26 to switch the change source. If it has not reached the set high stock, the bill dispenser will still provide the change amount and continue to monitor the accumulated amount in the bill storage area until the set high stock is reached.

Step S26: Change the change amount to the payment bills of the recycling machine and proceed to step S27. After reaching the switching standard, the bill controller controls the switch to switch the source of the bills, and the payment bills are output from the bill storage area of the recycling machine as the source of bills to meet the change amount.

Step S27: Determine whether the paper bill storage area has dropped to the set low stock level. If so, the switcher will switch back to using the change paper bills from the bill dispenser to provide the change amount and return to step S24. If not, the circulation machine will continue to provide the change amount. The stock level in the paper bill storage area will continue to drop after the bill is changed. When it drops to the set low stock level, the bill controller will control the switcher to switch the source of paper bills again, and the bill dispenser will be used to output the change paper bills as the source of bills to meet the change amount.

The above description is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to be limiting. Any equivalent modification or change made to the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention shall be included in the scope of the patent application attached hereto.

10: Self-service payment machine

11: Machine housing

12: Internal space of the machine

13: Operation interface

14: Circulation machine

15: Cash dispenser

16: Find the currency controller

131: Cash collection port

132: Cash Out

Claims (10)

A self-service payment machine with a change function comprises: a machine housing, which comprises an operation interface and an internal space of the machine, wherein the operation interface is provided with a bill receiving port and a bill discharging port; a recycling machine, which is provided in the internal space of the machine and connected to the bill receiving port and the bill discharging port, and receives a payment paper bill inserted by a user through the bill receiving port, and changes the payment paper bill according to the bill a paper bill storage area of a corresponding denomination in a type; a bill dispenser disposed in the internal space of the machine and connected to the bill outlet, the bill dispenser and the recycling machine being independently disposed, storing a preset number of change paper bills; and a bill change controller disposed in the internal space of the machine, the bill change controller being connected to the operation interface, the recycling machine and the bill dispenser, respectively. The change controller receives the payment information input by the user on the operation interface, and then the circulation machine recognizes the payment bill inserted to calculate a change amount, and a switch is set to control the bill outlet to output the change bill of the bill dispenser or the payment bill of the circulation machine to provide the change amount; wherein the change controller is preset by the change of the bill dispenser. The change amount is provided by the change bills in the bill storage area until the payment bills in the bill storage area reach the set high storage amount, and then the change amount is provided by the payment bills in the recycling machine through the switch. When the payment bills in the bill storage area are continuously output and drop to the set low storage amount, the change amount is provided by the change bills in the bill issuing machine again. The self-service payment machine with a change function as described in claim 1 further comprises an independent cash box, which is arranged in the internal space of the machine. The independent cash box is connected to the recycling machine. When the temporary storage amount of a bill in each of the bill storage areas reaches a storage limit, the payment bills received subsequently are pressed into the independent cash box. The self-service payment machine with change function as described in claim 1 further includes a coin machine, which is arranged in the internal space of the machine. The coin machine is connected to a coin input port and a coin output port of the operation interface. The coin input port receives a payment coin from the user and stores the coin in the coin machine according to the coin type. When the banknote issuing machine and the recycling machine are out of paper money, the change amount is output by the coin machine to the coin output port. The self-service payment machine with change function as described in claim 3, wherein the bill outlet and the coin outlet are provided with a change slot for receiving paper bills or coins of the change amount. A self-service payment machine with a change function as described in claim 1, wherein the change controller is provided with a network connection device, and payment information is received through the network connection device. A method for making change for a self-service payment machine is applicable to a self-service payment machine with a change function. The method comprises the following steps: setting up the self-service payment machine, the self-service payment machine comprising a machine housing, a recycling machine, a bill dispensing machine and a change controller. The machine housing comprises an operation interface and an internal space of the machine. The recycling machine, the bill dispensing machine and the change controller are connected to the machine housing. The machine and the change controller are arranged in the internal space of the machine; the cash dispenser is arranged as a default change device, and the cash dispenser stores a preset number of change bills; a payment bill inserted by a user is received through a bill receiving port of the operation interface, and stored in a bill temporary storage area of the corresponding denomination in the recycling machine according to the type of the payment bill; the cash controller receives the payment bill The user inputs payment information on the operation interface, and the recycling machine recognizes the payment bill to calculate a change amount, controls the bill dispensing machine to output the change bill, and provides the change amount at a bill outlet on the operation interface; determines whether the bill buffer area has reached a set high inventory level, and if so, changes all switches of the bill controller to the circulation machine. The payment note is used to provide the change amount and the next step is continued. If not, the cash dispenser is used to provide the change amount. It is determined whether the cash buffer area has dropped to a set low stock. If so, the switch is used to switch the cash dispenser to provide the change amount and return to the previous step. If not, the circulation machine is used to provide the change amount. A method for changing bills in a self-service payment machine as described in claim 6, wherein when the temporary storage amount of a bill in the temporary storage area of the bill reaches a storage limit, the payment bills subsequently received are pressed into an independent cash box. The self-service payment machine's change method as described in claim 6, wherein the self-service payment machine further comprises a coin machine, which is arranged in the machine's internal space, and the coin machine is connected to a coin input port and a coin output port of the operation interface, and receives a payment coin from the user through the coin input port, and stores the coin in the coin machine according to the coin type, and when the banknote issuing machine and the recycling machine are out of paper money, the change amount is output by the coin machine to the coin output port. The change method of the self-service payment machine as described in claim 8, wherein the bill outlet and the coin outlet are provided with a change slot for receiving the paper bills or coins of the change amount. A method for finding a change in a self-service payment machine as described in claim 6, wherein the change controller receives payment information via a network connection device.