US2545426A - Coin selector - Google Patents

Description

O. A. HOKANSON March 13, 1951 COIN SELECTOR 4 Sheets-Sheet l Fle'd Deo. 6, 1945 R@ Mw fz.

:wm w W March 13, 1951 o. A. HoKANsoN COIN SELECTOR 4 Sheets-Sheet I5 Filed Dec. 6, 1945 March 13, 1951 o. A. HoKANsoN COIN SELECTOR 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dc. e, 1945 Alllll w HQI Patented Mar. 13, 1951 y I. Otto A. Hokanson, Snyder, N. Y., assignor to The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, North Tonawanda, N. Y., a corporation of Qliio Application December 6, 1945, Serial No. 633,145

The present invention relates to coin selectors, and more particularly to 'an improved coin selector which is'so-constructed aseto readily facilitate cleaning and repair. 1 Coin selectors orslug rejectors are not un- -commonly located in rsuch places as Yto accumulate dust and dirt, and not infrequently coin selectors are also subject to the abuse of certain individuals Awho-stuit paper and extraneous matter into the coin selectors. Where the coin selectorhas accumulated dirt and yforeign matter, it is necessary to either remove the selector or to take 'the selector apart' so that the interior may be cleaned and all foreign matter removed. Inrcertan locations coin --selectors 4"frequently .accumulate grime, grease and ldust which. must .be cleaned oi all of the moving'parts of the selector in order to place the selectorv in 'proper operating condition. Coin selectors are designed to have certain operating characteristics which'usually involve the relative speed of thepassage of a coin through certain coinvpassages. vAny change of the proper speedof the passageof the coin due to increased frictionresulting fromunclean surfaces accordinglyfresultsiin improper operation. In the past it has been extremely vdifficulty to yproperly cleanthe Ainterior of .coin selectors because of the type of construction employed.

In order to readily facilitate such cleaning, preferably by means ofa 'brush and a detergent, it would bedesirable to providesuch structure that convenient access may be had to both of the interior walls of a coin selector. This may be accomplished in accordance rwith'the present invention by providing fori. the selective vmanual movement of one ofthe walls away froma stationary or supporting wall. By so moving the wall through an angle ofat least. ninety degrees ory substantially thatamount it is possible to clean all. interior surfaces of the coin selector. f L

It, therefore, is an object ofthe present invention to provide animproved type of. coin selector which is particularly suited for servicing and cleaning the interior. j s p It is' another obj ect of; thev present` invention tovprovide an improvedcoin selector .in which a normally stationary but movable wall anda movable gate are each movable away from Aa lcooperating wall for cleaningpurposes. y s Y Another object` f the present invention is to provide an improved coin selector having an improved type of rebound anvil which is positive in operation and which does not readily accumulate dirtand foreign matter.

` .Y 4 claims.v (01.194-102) Still another objectof the present invention is to provide an improved coin selector having adjacent its entrance means for testing the weight of the coin. v

' Still another vobject of the present inventionis to provide an improved coin selector having a .plurality of testing devices therein acting upon a coin in particular order to provide the desired discrimination between acceptable and nonacceptable coins.y

. Other and further objects of the present invention subsequently will become apparent by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with thev accompanying drawings whereinV lFigure 1 is a side view of one type of coin selector constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

' Figure 2 is an end View of the coin selector shown in Figure l; Y

Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the coin selector of Figures 1 and 2 opened for cleaning and servicing;

Vtor constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 7 is an end view of the selector shown in Figure 6;

Figure 8 is a perspective view showing the selector of Figures 6 and 7.when opened for cleaning and servicing; and

Figure `9 is a perspective view of the coin selector-as seen from the opposite direction when closed. Y

` The slug rejector shown in Figures 1 to 5 has a stationary wall II and end walls I2 and I3 "which may be formed integrally with the stationaryvwall from a single sheet of material. A cooperating parallel wall I4 is provided so that suitable coin runways and passages may be formed between the two walls II and I4. The one end wall I2 is provided with a pair of struck out ears I5 and I6 which are arranged to sup- 'port pivotally one edge of the cooperating side wall I4. The side wall IB is provided with struck out lugs or ears Il and I8 which are arranged generally parallel to the ears I5 and I6. A Suitable pin I9 is provided to form the hinged connection between the Wall I4 and the end wall I2. `The other edge of the wall I4 is provided `into the coin. runway.

with a notched portion 2| which cooperates with an inwardly struck guide portion 22 so that the left edge of the wall I4 as shown in Figure 1 is properly positioned with respect to the end wall I3 and so that the inner surface of the movable wall I4 is properly oriented with respect to l the inner surface ofthe xed wall II. The wall I4 normally is retained in position by a spring biased latch member 23 which is provided with a finger grip portion 24. This latch member biased by the spring 20 may be disengaged from the guide portion of the latched strike 22 to permit the movable wall I4 to be moved outwardly away from the stationary wall H.

A portion of the stationary Awall I I is bent forwardly so as to provide a supporting'ear or lug 25 which is parallel to the end wall I3'. Between `arcuate `coniigunition Voi the periphery of a 'coin Yof the proper denomination. This arcuate con.- g-uration 32 serves to prevent .over diameter coins from passing the over diameter stop subsequently to be described. This curvature also prevents the cradle from tilting sufficiently when thecoin is under diameter. An underl diameter coinwill not have the center oi itsl weightlocated properly with respect to the counterbalance 3| so that the cradle does vnot discharge the coin Only when the coin is of proper diameter and of a. weight at least equal to the proper weight will the center of weight be suiliciently to the right as seen in Fig. 1 and of suflicient magnitude, so that the cradle will be .pivoted so as to discharge the coin thereon into the coin runway. The gate 26 is provided with a stop pin 33 for limiting the downward movement of the cradle 2B so that a coin carried by the cradle is discharged upon the y.inclinedV runway formed.. by the base portion 21 secured to the vprojecting lug adjacent the Vtop edge of the movable wall I4. Assuming that the coin clears the over diameter stop 34, the coin rolls down the -inclined runway 21 to be subjected. to the effect of a magnetic iield. The magnetic eld is formed by a pair of permanent magnets. One perinaknent magnet 35 is mounted on the outside of the stationary wall II` so that its pole pieces 31- extend through suitable apertures in the wal-l so as to present a flush surface `on the inside of the wall vI I.` `Another ymagnet 36 is mounted on the the movable wall I4.` The coin rollingv down the inclined runway 2l will be stopped by thev action of these magnets if the coin is a magnetic slug. Ii the coin is not of paramagnetic material, the

coin will continue on in a free trajectory. The

coin will have a trajectory so as to strike an anvil 39. An acceptable coin rebounds from the anvil 39 to .clear a barrier 4I which serves'V as .a segregation member between the acceptance chute and the reject chute. As seen in Figure 3 the reject chute is to the right of the barrier 4I, and the acceptance chute is to the left of the barrier.

The anvil 39 is shown in detail in Figure 5 and is mounted on the stationary wall II by a screw or bolt 42. The anvil 39 consists of a relatively thin sheet of hardened. metal so asv to present a substantially knife edge surface to the rim of the coin. The anvil 39 is spaced from the wall II by a washer 43 of such thickness that the knife edge surface 39 is located substantially midway between the stationary wall II and the `movable wall I4. Ii'A desired a suitable slot 44 may be formed inthe wall II to provide acerta'in degree of adjustment of the height of the .anvil 39 :so that the desired rebound trajectory may be obtained 'to cause an acceptable coin to pass intothe acceptance chute to the left of the segregation barrier 4I. Where such construetionis emplay'ed the anvil 39 may have a trapeaoidal shape so that; the right end portion bears against the end wall I-.2 to insure rigidity and maintenance of. the contact surface at a constantwangle for lany position of adjustment. The wall `I I may also-be provided with an adjustment siot 45 so that the segregation barrier 4I may be moved within. certain limits. The barrier '4i may be `secured in position by a suitable bolt or screw 46l The wall v,II at a. point just below the gate 26 vis provided with anv inwardly` struck deflector 4.1 which cooperates with an inwardly formed -deflector 48` on the movable wall I4. The gate 26 isarranged to be moved outwardly lfor clearing .the coin-passage ofany coins blocking the passage either due to being Vunder weight orover diameter, Such 'coins then fall down on to the. vdeector 41 and. engage. the l:cooperating -deiiectcr dilJ toudrop into a chute 49 which connects with thereirect chute orr outlet.VV i

.In ordertoprovidenior clearing the coin selec- `tor of magnetic slugs, over diameter coins and under-diameter coins, there is provided a scavenger lever 5I which isifpivotally mounted on a pin or stud 52 on the back side/of the stationary wall Ha The lever 5I is provided with ka nger actuating. portion 53` which `may be moved by the .finger .or by a rod or other mechanism which is manually actuated. for clearing the coin selector.. The lever 5I" biased to: an upwardy position by a.l spring 54 which passesaboutthe stu-d 52 andhasone endyin engagement with the stud 55..Y Thelother-end ofthe spring 54 engages :allymounted en a stud 58.. They scavenger arm outside of the movable wall I4 with the pole v .pieces 38 .extending through suitable Vapertures yso as topresent a iiush surface on Ythe inside of 51 is mounted on the wall 'I'.'I- between the walls I I and I4 so as normally to be in a position some distance above theA inclined runway formedV by the base mem-ber' Z1 of the. gateY 26. The arm 51 has a bell-crank configuration carrying at one end a pin 59. The pin 59 passes through. .a slot 6'# -inthe lever 5i ata pointintermediate the -ends of' the lever. aapoint vintermediate the pins 521and 59, the'lever 5I- is provided with a cut-out portion '52 which vengages a inger or arm .63 forming an integral .part :of the gate 2'6. In the position-shown Figures- 1 :and l3 the scavenger lever 5I lis* in a substantially horizontal position. In that position' the finger 53 is inaJ position so "thatthe gate 26 Ahangs `'a substantially vertical plane. In such position the vinner edge-'of' the -hingedly connected to the end wall 61.

inclinedrunway base 21 is in contact with the inner surface ofthe stationary wall II so that the weighttesting device or cradle 28 is in a plane parallel to the wall II. When, however, the scavenger lever 5I is actuated in a downward direction, `the notch 62 moves the lever 63 downwardly to swing the gate 26 outwardly. At the same time the pin59 actuates the scavenger arm l so that it sweeps acrossthe faces of the permanent magnets to move any slug held thereby toward the reject chute via the deectors 41 and 48. If an over diameter coin or an under diameter coin is retained in position by the gate 26, the outwardvmovement ofthe gate releases such Ycoin so that it strikes the deflectors 41 and 48 and passes into the reject chute 49. Y

It may then be assumed thatthe coin selector has its parts generally in the positionshownv in Figure 1 and that it is desired to open the selector forcleaninvg the interior surfaces. The'service operator grasps the linger portion 24 of the latch 23 and moves it upwardly so as to disengage the latch from the strikeY 22. The entire movable wall I4 may then be moved outwardly to a pos'ition substantially that shown in Figure 3. The serviceman may then take holdof the bottom of vthe gate 26 and move it through an angle of at 'least 180 to a position substantially that shown in Figure 3. vWith the gate 26 and the wall I4 in the 'position shown, it comes apparent that all surfaces may readily be cleaned with a brush and detergent. Thus all foreign matter, dust, oil and grime may be removed, and the pivotal connections for the movable parts of the weight test device and the scavenger mechanism may be lubricated. Opening up theinner surfaces of the coin selector also makes it possible to makeV any vnecessary adjustments of either the anvil 39 or the segregator 4I. After the inner surfaces have all been cleaned and the parts lubricated, the gate andthe wall may be restored to theiroriginal position whereupon the selector is again ready to function in its proper manner. Y

The coin selector shown in yFigures 1 to 5` utilizes a rebound anvil. Rebound anvils are commonly utilized in segregating acceptable from non-acceptable coins in the nickel or five cent denominations. In selectors particularly designed for the five cent coins, it is also common at times to include a test for washers or perforated coins. Such testing device has not been shown in Figures 1 to 5 but is shown in conjunction with the selector illustrated in Figures 6 to 9. The selector 'shown in Figures 6 to; 9, however, will be described as being applied to testing silver coins 'such as dimesV and quarters.

The coin selector shown in Figures 6 to 9 has a stationary wall 65 and integrally formed end walls 68 and 6l.Y A cooperating movable wall 63 is A gate 69 is hingedly supported adjacent the top of the stationary Vwall 65. The gate -69 is pivotally mounted between the end wall 66 and a projection or ear 'II formed ofy a portion of the stationary wall 65. The gate 61 is provided with'pintle portions I2l and '13. The pivot or pintle portion 'IS is appreciably longer than the pivot 'i2 so that the entire gate 69 Vmay beuremoved if desired. This is accomplished by supporting the shorter pivot 72 in a suitable aperture in the end wall 66. 'I'he gate 69 is biased toward the end wall 68 by a disc spring 'I4 positioned between -the gate 69 and the projecting lug or ear 1I. The gate 69 carries a Weight testing cradle 'I5 which has a counterbalancing weight 16 extending through justed position.

selector.

6. an aperture 'I1 in the gate. The cradle I5 is pivotally mounted on a suitable stud 'I8 and the movement of the cradle is limited in a downward direction by means of a stop stud 19. The gateV $9 also has an inwardly projecting portion 8l which serves as the foundation for an inclined runway. When the coin engages the arcuate surface of the cradle l5, and is of at least a predetermined weight and diameter, the cradle will tilt so as to discharge the coin from the cradle on to the inclined runway 8l to subject the coin to subsequent tests. In so doing the coin must however clear an over diameter stop 82 which is Aformed as an inward projection adjacent the upper edge of the movable `wall 68. If the coin is of proper vdiameter it will roll downthe inclined runway 8i so as tojbe subjected to the influence of the magnetic eld produced by a pair of permanent magnets 83 and 84 arranged with pole pieces 85 and 85 extending through suitable apertures in the xed wall 65 and the movable wall 88 respectively. These magnets affect the trajectories of non-magnetic coins rolling down the inclined runway 8 I. These magnets serve to retain paramagnetic slugs on the runway or adjacent the faces of the permanent magnets 83 and 84. The end of the runway 8l is arranged for cooperation with an adjustably positioned barrier or segregation member 81 which extends through a suitable aperture 88 in the wall 65. The edge of the projecting member 8l may be adjusted by means of a slot 89 formed in the wall 85 and a suitable fastening means or bolt QI- which holds the member 8l in position. The member 81 is provided for engagement by such coins which have a particular reaction to the magnetic eld as is the case where copper coins are inserted in the coin Copper coins are'slowed down by the magnetic field to a much greater extent than are silver coins with the resultthat the copperr coins just roll over the edge of the inclined runway 8| and thereupon strike the upper edge of the segregating barrier 8l. This causes the coin to be Vthrown outwardly so as to strike a'separator or barrier 92. mounted at 93 and has a rearwardly extending portion 94 of sufcient mass as tonormally retain the forward projection S2 in the position shown in Figure 6. The segregator portion 92 extends through an aperture 95 in the rear wall 65. The segregator or barrier 92Y is mounted so as to be capable of slight pivotal movement upon receiving the impact of a coin thereby torprevent undue rebound of the coin. A copper slug vwill strike the member 92 and `drop toward the right into the reject opening. Y u The silver co-in will. leave the end'of the inclined passageway BI and strike the separator 92 Vso as to cause the coin to move tothe left in Figure 6 and pass down the separator 96 into the acceptance chute. An exact position of the member 92 Ywithin the opening 95'mayV be varied within certain limits by means of the mounting member v9T `which is longitudinally adjustable by virtue of an adjustment slot 98 formed in the stationary wall 85. A suitable bolt 89 is provided for retaining the segregating member 92 in ad- The movable wall 68 carries on the outside a reject passage I 0I for receiving coins which are rejected due to a scavenging action on the coin selector. n The vwall 68 adjacent the chute IUI is provide-d with an inwardly curved deflector vportion |02 which is adapted to extend'into a This barrier is pivotally the wall `65.

.scavenger arm |I 5.

7. longitudinal opening or` recess `|3213 in .the wall y|55.. Thus when the gate 69 is moved .out- Wardly to release any .coi-ns held thereby, .the coins -will drop down to engage the deector `|02 and :drop into the reject runway IGI.

Thezcoin selector fw-all .til is pivotally mounted on the .end wall 51 so .that if desired the wall l:t3 may .be removed entirely. To this end the wall .68 in the proximity of the wall 61 is provided with a. laterally bent .end portion 68a .havirng formed at opposite iends pivot members |04 and .40.5, -thel-atter-one bein-g longer. interposed be- .tween .the upper end of the portion .08a and an inwardly turned -ear -portion |06 vof the end wall k61 isadisc spring retaining member |201. The

' end wall 61 has 4.a cooperating lower ear |08 struck inwardly and formed with a suitable aperture for receiving the Ilower pivot member I 04. If it is desired to entirely remove the movable lwall -l68, .a movement upwardly to compress the spring |01 will permit disengagementof the pivot member |04 `from the apertured ear |53. Since the lower edge lof the gate 5S extends beneath .the upper edge of the deflector |52, the gate 59 must be at least partially raised before the shift- .able wall l68 `can be moved to open position. After removalof the pivot IMI the movable wall 68 may be tilted and Ymoved downwardly so as vto withdraw the pivot |05 from the apertured .ear |06. Thus if desired the entire wall may be removed for cleaning and for servicing.

I fvdesired the coin selector may also be provided with a means for stopping apertured coins. Such an arrangement may be optional with coins of va denomination commonly found in silver coins, but it is more Acommonly found in conjunction with ve cent coins. This washer stopping means comprises a lever |09 supported from an outwardly extending ear III from the wall 65. The lower portion of the lever |09 is bent inwardly so as to have a ksmall projecting portion I|2 adapted to pass through an aperture II3 in The aperture I|3 is located So as to be in the coin passageway formed by the piv- Voted gate 69. It will be .noted that the lower extremity of the lever |09 has an inclined surface portion I I4 which is adapted to be engaged by a The scavenger arm ||5 is provided with a nger or actuating portion ||6 at its outer Vfree extremity. The arm |-|5 is pivotally mounted at the other extremity at I |1 and v.is biased upwardly by means of a spring IIB tion II2 from .the aperture II3.

In order to remove magnetic slugs which may adhere to the pole pieces 85 and 86 of the magnets 83 and 84 there is provided a scavenger sweep lever |23 pivotally mounted at |24 and having a bell crank portion |25 in pivotal engagement vwith an intermediate part of the scavenger arm I I5. This pivotal connection may include the stud |26 which moves in a longitudinal slot |21 in the arm II5. A downward movement of the lever ||5 actuates the outer extremity of the sweep arm |23 so as to clear the faces .of the magnets and .to move the slug over toward When the vided" with a -notch |28 which. is--adapted to4 engage an arm `|219 integrally formed with'the gate 6.9. A downward movement vof .the lever yI I5 therefore actuates the .arm Y12.9 to cause the gate 69 to -be-swung outwardly. The weight-crad1e15 has such congurationas'to stop any coins which are under .weightor under diameter; Either 'ty-pe of coin vwill failto .move the counterbalancing weight 16 suiliciently to lpermit the coin to be discharged on to the runway 8|. When the gate 6.9 .therefore is .moved outwardly .in the scavenging'ac-tion, the .coins are permitted to drop on to the deflector .|02 and to roll down `the discharge o1- reject chute |0:I..

.The vmovable wall 6B is normally retained Vin a position parallel to the -wall 65; .In order to provide Vproper cooperationl between the com ponents on the wall .68 and .the 4wall 165,there is provided in the wall .'08 a'guideinotch |3| `which cooperates with `a guide projection |32 which is formed ,in the end wall 66. Another notch |33 is provided for passage beyond the latch portion |34 which is also formed in the wall 66. A pivotedlatchingmember |35 .is pivotally mounted at .|36 and biased in `one direction by means of a spring |31. The latch |36 is of bell crank con- `figuration having `.ainger .actuating portion |38. Movement of the latch |35 by grasping the finger portion. |38 vwill be in opposition to the spring |31-to .disengage .the `lower latching portion |39 from the latched strike |34. Thus the latch mechanism .described may be actuated to permit the wall 68 to be moved outwardly vfor cleaning purposes. y

The pivoted gate 69 may be grasped and moved upwardly to the position shown in Figure 8. If desired the entire gate may be removed by compressing the spring 14 so that the pivot 1I may be withdrawn trom the aperture at the end wall 6.6. vWhen this has been .accomplished the .gate 69 may be tilted so asr to withdraw the pivot 13 from .the ear .or supporting bracket 1 I.

Cooperating with the guidev portions |3| and I 32 and the latch-mechanism for retaining in pon .sition .the movable wall v68, there is provided an adjustable .stop |4I .mounted ina threaded aperture inthe wall 65. A lock nut |42 is provided to retain Yin adjustment the stop screw I4I so that the end vof the stop screw abuts the inner Ysurface .of the movable wall v68 to insure the provided which serves to block under weight and under diameter coins and which in cooperation with an over diameter stop serves .to block over diameter coins. For testing coins of five cent denomination, there has been disclosed a unique rebound `anvil .showing a knife edge to the rim of the coin. A coin selector designed Afor the lve cent ycoins may incorporate the washer stop -mechanism shown in the second embodiment.

For the testingV of silver coins such as ten and ltwenty-live cent coins, a series of tests are employed including the adjustably positioned `segregator vimmediately beneath the inclined run- Way and the pivotally mounted segregator immediately above the acceptance and reject chutes 9 c which by virtue of its pivotal mounting eliminates spurious action due to a rebound of a coin striking this segregator. Coin selectors for all denominations of coins may be so constructed as to have the gate and the movable wall removable as disclosed in the embodiment illustrated in the drawings, Figures 6 to 9.

It will also be appreciated that while the drawings have shown several specic embodiments and certain details that the present invention is not to be limited thereby since such variations in the arrangements and in the individual details are contemplated as may be commensurate with the spirit and scope of the invention expressed in the following claims.

This invention is hereby claimed as follows:

1. A coin selector comprising a stationary Wall having a pivoted gate provided with a member to form an inclined runway, said gate defining a coin passageway adjacent the entrance to said selector, said gate being mounted by a separable hinge normally retained in hinged relation by a spring, said gate being provided with a coin testing means for stopping under diameter, and under weight coins, said gate being pivotally mounted for manual movement away from said Wall to clear said testing means of stopped coins and to provide access to the inner surfaces of said gate and said wall.

2 A coin testing device comprising in combination a frame having a vertical wall forming one wall of a coin passageway, an entrance chute formed by a gate pivotally mounted on said Wall, said gate carrying a coin testing device for stopping under diameter and under weight coins, said testing device comprising a pivotally mounted counterbalanced lever having a coin receiving surface of a configuration generally complementary to the outer periphery of a coin.

3. A coin testing device comprising in combination a frame having a vertical wall forming one wall of a coin passageway, an entrance chute formed by a gate hingedly mounted on said wall, said gate carrying a coin testingdevice and a part of the base of an inclined runway, said testing device comprising a pivotally mounted counterbalanced lever normally positioned so as to intercept coins introduced into said chute, said device in response to a coin of at least a predetermined weight and size operating to pivotally move to discharge said coin on said runway, abutment means positioned above the'coin passage formed by said runway for cooperation with said testing device for stopping over diameter coins, said testing device having a coin engaging surface generally complementary to an arcuate portion of the periphery of a coin, said n surface be so positioned relative to the abutment means as to stop over diameter coins.

4. A coin testing device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the abutment means is carried by a movable wall substantially co-mating along adjacent edges with said gate when closed and wherein said movable wall is hingedly connected to the vertical wall and is provided with a reject chute for receiving rejected over-diameter coins stopped by said abutment means.

` OTTO A. HOKANSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the ille of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 577,911 Boland Mar. 2, 1897 2,052,611 DuGrenier Sept. 1, 1936 2,226,873 Patzer Dec. 31, 1940 2,292,628 Fry Aug. 11, 1942 2,339,695 Gottfried Jan. V18, 1944 2,371,310 Patzer Mar. 13, 1945

Images