US2300696A - Coin chute - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 3, 1942.

W. PATZER ET AL COIN GHUTE Filed April 25, 1940 w'zlz'am/ '1 I r Imam-ATL- ok/ 9/ INVENTORS 7475/2, ATTO Patented Nov. 3, 1942 COIN GHUTE 4 I William Patzer and Walter A. Tratsch,

, Chicago, 111.

Application April 25, 1940, SerialNo'. 331,514 2 3 Claims.

This invention relates to coin testing devices and particularly those known as gravity testing chutes, wherein a coin moves down an inclined passage relative to various testing mechanisms and is ultimately directed into an acceptance or reject opening,

More particularly, the invention relates to a type of chute wherein the coin departs from the end of a runway into space, and the path or trajectory of the coin together with certain physical characteristics thereof determines the ultimate movement of the coin into an acceptance or reject passage, there being a magnetic field adjacent the end of the runway, which is efiective to determine the trajectory of the coin, depending upon certain electrical and physical characteristics thereof. j

A principal object of the invention is the provision in a coin chute of the class described, of means for efiecting the discharge of coin elements which have a metallic constituency analogous to that of a legitimate coin and which metallic constituency permits the coin element to move through the magnetic field in a manner to cause its acceptance, notwithstanding the fact that the coin to be rejected does not have other necessary physical characteristics corresponding it to a legitimate coin.

Viewed from another aspect, it is an object of the invention to provide, in a coin chute having kineto-magnetic coin testing means adapted to cause coins of a certain diameter andhaving a metallic constituency including nickel, to follow a certain trajectory, the combination of auxiliary testing means for causing the discharge of coin elements having a sufficient nickel content to cause them to follow the required trajectory but having a diameter greater than that of the acceptable coin.

Other objects, advantages and novel aspects of the invention reside in certain details of construction as well as the cooperative relationship of the component parts of the illustrative. embodiment described hereinafter in view of the annexed drawing, in which:

Fig, 1 is a fragmentary perspective of. a coin chute employing the invention;

Fig. 2 is an elevational view of the interior of the chute showing a portion of the gate cut away to show the coin passage and relation of shown in Fig. 2 whereinja chute body in the form of a plate I0, provided withopposite ofiset vertical edge portions ll, constitutes a housing or mounting for the testing means, and a downwardly inclined runway I2 is disposed to guide coin elements. from an entrance opening 13 thereabove, in the general direction of a reject exit l4 and an acceptance exit [5 arranged in the space below, beneath the lower terminal I20, of the runway.

The chute passage is closed oii through its major extent by a gate l6 (Fig. 1) mounted to swing on a horizontal pivot I1 and moved from a normally pendent passage closing position outwardly of the plate H] by action of a lever [8 which moves a cam arm l9 against a roller 20 on the gate so as to open the passage and permit sidewise discharge of coin elements therefrom into a return chute 2.! which leads ultimately to the same discharge point as the reject exit I4.

The testing means includes a permanent magnet 22 (Fig. 2) arranged with its. pole pieces aligned with the lower terminus I2a of'the runway so as to propagate a strong field across the direction of movement of coin elements into the enlarged area between the lower end of the runway and the exits HI and -I5.

The exits l4 and I5 are defined by simply leaving the bottom edge portion of the chute body unobstructed and placing at one side of the chute a rebound anvil 23 having an inclined wedge-shaped edge 24' disposed so that certain coin elements, following a certain-trajectory from the end of the runway, will rebound from the anvil past an intermediate deflector or segregator 25 into the passage designated at l5 and defined between the segregator 25 and the lefthand offset wall portion H of the chute body. An elongated impact bar 26 of steel or the like is positioned against the wall portion II as an impact element.

The particular testing chute illustrated is intended to test'five, ten' and twenty-five cent coins of U. S. minting, and to this end there is provided a testing deflector 21 below the end of the runway and above the reject exit M on a line that is closer to the segregator '25 than the anvil 23, the testing deflector '21 having a beveled edge portion 28 inclined toward the reject exit. Situated between the testing deflector 21 and the lower end He of the runway is a second testingdeflector. .29 positioned almost in vertical alignment with the segregator 25.

In testing the three denominations of coin aforesaid, the field of force from the magnetic means 22 plays an important role, the arrangement being such that legitimate nickels will travel down the runway at a certain velocity into and through the field of force of the magnet and depart from the runway into space along the dash-dot trajectory to strike the edge 24 of the anvil and rebound along the arrowed line into acceptance opening [5. By virtue of the metallic content of the five-cent coin, particularly the presence therein of an amount of nickel, the electrical conductivity of the coin is relatively lower than that of the ten and twenty-five cent pieces which include appreciable quantities of silver, known to be more highly conductive than nickel. As the five-cent coin or nickel breaks into and through the magnetic field, eddy currents are set up in the coin, dependent-in strength, among other things, upon the resistance or conductivity of the metallic body, the eddy currents opposing the field which sets them up and therefore constituting a reactive force which tends to slow the coin down, or, in other terms, todissipate a certain amount of the kinetic energy of the coin in its movement from the end of the runway. The trajectory of the five-cent coin. thus influenced by the magnetic field as a result of the alloy or metallic content in the coin body, carries the coin onto the anvil 23 from which the coin'rebounds along another trajectory determined by the metallic content of the coin, particularly its hardness, to carry the coin into the acceptance opening.

Coin elements which are slowed down to a greater extent than the five-cent coin naturally tend to drop along a shorter trajectory into the reject opening [4, or as will shortly appear, directly onto the deflector 21, which is likely to cause the coin to move into the reject opening. If the trajectory is shortened, but not enough to 21 that movement into the reject opening is inevitable.

Because of the expense involved in producing an alloy having the necessary electrical and metallic characteristics to carry it along a proper trajectory for appropriate rebound from the anvil, there have been only negligible attempts to devise spurious coin elements to defraud the coin chute in this manner. However, it has been found that certain legitimate coin elements of foreign countries, notably, for example, the ten centavos coin of Mexico, are possessed of the necessary qualities to successfully negotiate the v ,chute passage.

prevent the coin striking the anvil, the probability is that the metallic content of sucha coin will be relatively soft, and the coin in striking the anvil will lose energy because of its own resiliency and fail to pass the segregator 25, or if the coin should be fairly hard, it will, under the foregoing circumstances nevertheless approach the anvil attoo low a speed t'oeifect the v necessary rebound.

The ten and twenty-five cent coins arestruck from an alloy which is more highly conductive than the'five-cent coins and, in consequence, the are slowed down to a greater degree in passing the magnetic field and therefore drop at a shorter trajectory and engage the deflector 2! at a critical angle, provided the coins are of legitimate minting, to be deflected toward the acceptance opening l5. The angular disposition of the runway l2 and the particular disposition of the magnetic field producing means 22 are sufiiciently critical to cause the ten and twentyfive cent coins to approach the testing deflector 21 at a critical angle, from which a very slight deviation wouldresult in movement of the coins into the reject opening. The secondary deflector 29 also plays an important role in defeating the use of coin elements having a very high degree of conductivity, with the object of causing such coins to drop onto. the deflector 21 for movement into the acceptance opening. Spurious coin elements having such a high degree of conductivity drop short onto the secondary deflector 29 and are eitherdeflected along a trajectory which will carry them into the reject opening, or are directed at such. anangle toward the deflector The present invention has for its primary object the provision of means arranged to permit legitimate U. S. coins, particularly five-cent pieces, to pass along the proper trajectory for acceptance, but to arrest coin elements following this trajectory but having a larger diameter than the five-cent U. S. coin.

The novel fraud-preventive or testing means, as seen: in the sectional view of Fig. 3 particularly,.comprises a deflector 3D pivotally mounted as at 31 on the outside of the gate l6 and having an offset coin engaging portion 32 projecting through an opening 33 in the gate across the coin passage at a point spaced from the terminal or lower end portion [2a of the runway I 2, a distance sufficient to permit the passage of a coin as large as a twenty-five cent piece and also to permit passage of the legitimate five-cent coin without interference.

The deflector 30 is also provided with an offset counterbalancing arm 34 (Fig, 2) on which is an adjustable balancing screw 35 by means of which the sensitivity of the deflector may be appropriately gauged-and set to maintain the offset deflecting portion 32 thereof thrust forward (to the left in Fig. 2; to the right in Fig. 3) in a direction generally toward the lower end of the runway so .that the deflector may yield appreciably when struck by a coin for the purpose of avoiding too abrupt an arrest of the coin and one which might cause the coin to rebound accidentally along a path ultimately leading toward the acceptance opening. By making the deflector yieldable, it is also possible to dispose the same somewhat closer to the trajectory of acceptable coins, so that in the event of a very slight or brushing contact of such coins therewith, otherwise acceptable coin elements will not be accidentally rejected. The pivotal movements of deflector 30 are limited by the engagement of the offset coin engaging portion 32 thereof with opposite margins of the opening or slot 33, the range of movement, in any case, being suiflcient so that the coin engaging portion will lie in the path of coin elements having a diameter greater than that of a nickel, and to pivot after substantially arresting the coin element to permit the same to dropdownwardly between the runway and the deflector.

From the foregoing description, it will appear that the invention contemplates and provides a means for causing the rejection of coin elements having a metallic constituency which renders the same resistant to the induction therein of eddy currents to the same or a greater extent than that which characterizes the legitimate five-cent U. S. coin or nickel, and which would therefore cause such coins to follow the same or a broader trajectory than the nickel in passing through a magnetic testing field where the coin to be rejected has a greater diameter than the coin to be accepted.

In the prior art, diameter-testing means have been employed in spaced relation to runways for the purpose of preventing passage theredown of coin elements having greater than a certain diameter; however, such devices are not available for use in a testing chute of the class described herein for the reason that said chute is required to test and pass coin elements of diflerent diameter, some of said coin elements, e. g. the quarter, having a diameter greater than that of other coins, e. g. the five-cent piece, so that prior devices would not permit their passage down the runway in the required manner.

Viewed from another aspect, the nature of the testing operation, that is, the modification of a coins kinetic energy by setting up therein electrical reactions depending upon the electrical resistance of the coin whereby to cause the coin to follow a certain trajectory in leaving a runway, requires the spacing of the deflector with respect to the end of the runway so as to permit coins of various diameters to traverse the runway and yet deflect coins following the required trajectory or one which is broader than required for purposes of rejection, and particularly to deflect or arrest such coin elements if the diameter thereof is too large.

The various advantages and objects of the invention may be accomplished by modifications of the particular embodiment specifically described herein, and it is intended that the appended claims shall include all equivalent arrangements fairly coming within their call,

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In a coin chute of the class described including a downwardly inclined runway and means providing a magnetic testing field across a lower end portion of the runway and through which U. S. coins of five and twenty-five cent denomination pass in gravitating down said runway, said testing field preventing said twentyfive cent denomination coins from following and allowing five cent denomination coins to follow a certain trajectory, the combination of means for deflecting coin elements having a diameter and a resistance to the induction therein of eddy currents greater than that of a five-cent U. S. coin, said means comprising a deflector pivotally mounted for movement toward and away from said lower end of the runway at a point opposite thereto, and means yieldingly urging said deflector into a normal position toward said runway to be engaged by said coin elements having a greater diameter and resistance to deflect the same short of said certain trajectory and to cushion the speed of travel of said last-mentioned coin elements to prevent rebound of the same, said deflector in said normal position permitting the passage therebeneath of said five-cent U. S. coins in following said certain trajectory.

2. In a coin chute comprising a body consisting of two spaced plates providing a coin passage therebetween and including a runway in such passage down which coins gravitate and means for creating a magnetic field across the lower end region of the runway to cause acceptable coins having a certain resistance to the induction therein of eddy currents to follow a certain trajectory in leaving said runway, the combination of means for preventing coins having a greater resistance than that aforementioned and a greater diameter than acceptable coins from following a broader trajectory, said means comprising a deflector arranged for pivotal movement on one of said plates and having a lower end portion bent at right angles and adapted to extend through an opening formed in said one of said plates, the pivotal movement of said deflector being limited by said opening in said one of said plates, counterbalance means on said deflector tending to urge the lower end thereof toward said runway, said lower end portion being situated in spaced relation to said lower end of the runway in a position to be engaged by coins following a trajectory broader than said certain trajectory for deflection to fall short of said certain trajectory, the pivotal movement of said deflector retarding the speed of travel of coins engaging the same to prevent rebound of such coins back into the region of said runway. I

3. In a coin chute for testing coins of the U. S. five, ten and twenty-five cent denominations and including a pair of spaced walls providing a runway down which coins gravitate together with means for creating a magnetic field across the lower end region of the runway to cause coins of the five cent denomination having a certain resistance to induction therein of eddy currents to follow a certain trajectory in leaving said runway and to cause coins of the ten and twenty-five cent denominations having a lesser resistance to induction of eddy currents to follow a fore-shortened trajectory, the provision of deflector means for preventing coins having the same or a greater resistance than coins of the five cent denomination from following said certain or a broader trajectory, said means comprising, in combination, a member pivotally mounted on one of said walls, an opening formed in said one of said walls, a coin engaging portion extending laterally from said member, through said opening and into said runway, means tending to urge said portion in the direction of said runway, said coin engaging portion being disposed at a distance above and away from said lower region of the runway to permit passage therebeneath of coins of the five cent denomination and adapted to be engaged by coins of greater diameter than said five cent coins for deflection to fall short of said certain trajectory and to retard rebound of said coins of greater diameter toward said foreshortened trajectory.

WILLIAM PATZER. WALTER A. TRATSCH.

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