US2669337A

US2669337A - Coin hopper

Info

Publication number: US2669337A
Application number: US280539A
Authority: US
Inventors: Stewart Wilson Marks
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1952-04-04
Filing date: 1952-04-04
Publication date: 1954-02-16
Anticipated expiration: 1971-02-16

Description

Feb. 16,1954 w. M. STEWART COIN HOPPER Filed April 4. 1952 R, w L mw/ z vm n a rd M Wu, 5113/ ,.4 J,MMA7 Q gj U H Patented Feb. 16, 1954 COIN HOPPER Wilson Marks Stewart, Ottawa,

Ontario, Canada Application April 4, 1952, Serial No. 280,539 4 Claims. (01. 19497) This invention relates to a coin hopper adapted for use with a coin Selector of the type having a swingable sate.

A common type of coin selector has a swingable gate and a center plate. The swingable gate is normally biassed towards the center plate and is held a predetermined distance therefrom by spacers or other suitable means so that a coin receiving opening is formed between the gate and the center plate.

When the coin selector becomes jammed with a spurious or counterfeit coin, it may be cleared of the coin by operation of means (which will be hereinafter described) which swings the swingable gate a predetermined distance away from the center plate. This action allows the jammed coin to drop out of the coin selector. An example of a coin selector of this type is described in U. 8. Patent 2,292,628, issued August 11, 1942, in the name of Benjamin W. Fry.

It has been usual to provide a coin hopper or similar means to feed the coins to the coin receiving opening of the coin selector. In prior hoppers all of the sides thereof were fixed so that if two or more coins came to the bottom of the hopper together they could jam between the fixed sides. The rejecting feature of typical coin selectors was useful only for coins jammed in the selector and had no application for coins jammed in the hopper above the selector. Further, the jammed coins prevented any subsequent coins from reaching the coin receiving opening so that the entire apparatus with which the coin selector was associated was rendered inoperative. In order to put the apparatus back into operation it was necessary to open it and remove the jammed coins from the hopper. This inconvenience was often enhanced when the persons who could open the apparatus were not readily available.

Often, a coin would enter the hopper at right angles to the converging sides thereof so that it would stand on edge across the mouth of the hopper. Sometimes, under these conditions the offending coin could be knocked out of this position and down into the coin receiving opening by pounding or jiggling the apparatus. At other times, particularly when the apparatus was very rigidly mounted, the offending coin remained in the on-edge position at the top of the hopper and no reasonable amount of pounding or jiggling would dislodge it.

t is the principal object of the present invention to provide a coin hopper wherein the size of the opening at the lower end thereof may be conjunction with the following detailed description.

Figure 1 is an elevation of a typical coin selector with a coin hopper according to the invention mounted thereon,

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a sectional view similar to that of Figure 2 but with the swingable gate shownin the rejectin position, and

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 44 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

In the drawings, It] represents the center plate of a typical coin selector. A swingable gate H is mounted on a pintle I2 and biased towards the center plate I ll by means of a spring such as is shown at 83. Any suitable means (not shown) may be used to space the swingable gate H from the center plate [0 so as to form a coin receiving opening M (Figure 2). A dimple I5 is formed in the swingable gate II. A finger plate l1 having a downwardly extending flange I8 is mounted on a pivot l9. Secured in the flange I 8 is a protuberance it having a domed extremity which seats in the dimple l5. When pressure is applied to the finger plate I! in a downward direction, it pivots about l9 thereby causing the protuberance l6 to come out of the dimple l5. This action forces the gate H to open against the action of the spring It so that the width of the coin receiving slot is increased (see Figure 3). Thus any spurious coins which may be lodged in the coin selector are allowed to drop into chutes, one of which is shown at 20. The various features and parts of the coin se- I! which opens the swingable gate 1 I.

3 lector are standard and form no part of the present invention.

Associated with the coin selector is a coin hopper 2|. The coin hopper 2! has a back plate 22 which is provided with forwardly directed

flanges

23, 24. Pivotably supported in the

flanges

23, 24 at 25, 26 is a sloping member 21. The lower edge of the sloping member 21 is in resting engagement with the top of the swingable gate II.

If a plurality of coins are fed to the hopper 2i and happen to arrive at the mouth 28 together, they are liable to jam thereby preventing any further coins from reaching the coin receiving opening 14 of the coin selector. This was formerly a serious problem since prior coin hoppers employed fixed sides, and jiggling or shaking of the apparatus was liable to increase the jamming rather than relieve it. With the coin hopper 2! of the instant invention, any jammed coins are easily released by operation of the finger plate edge of the sloping member 21 which rests against the upper edge of the gate II will swing about its pivot 25, 26 thereby increasing the width of the opening of the mouth 28 so that any coins jammed therein are allowed to pass into the coin selector. This swinging action of the sloping member 21 occurs abruptly. When the finger plate I! is released, the action of the spring It? returns the swingable gate 1 l to its original position (Figure 2) in an abrupt manner. Hence, a kicking action is given to the lower edge of the sloping member 21 by the gate ll causing the sloping member 21 to flutter about its pivot points 25, 25. Any coins which are not released by opening the gate H are kicked out of their jammed condition by the fluttering action of the sloping member 21. Further, any coins which have come to rest on edge and are lodged between the back plate 22 and the sloping member 21 will be kicked up by the fluttering action and allowed to drop through the hopper 21 into the coin selector.

It is preferred (as shown in Figures 2 and 3) to provide the upper surface of the sloping member 21 with an arcuate curvature in the upper portion and a plane surface in the lower portion.

The lower What I claim as my invention is:

1. In combination with a coin chute oi the type having a. vertically pivoted forwardly swingable gate, a vertical coin hopper disposed above said coin chute and arranged to feed coins thereto;

said coin hopper comprising a first member, two

side members extending forwardly from said first member, and a rearwardly sloping member pivotally supported near its upper edge between said side members;

the pivot point of said sloping member in each side member being positioned forward of said swingable gate and near the edge of said side member which is remote from said first member; the lower edge of said sloping memher being in resting engagement with the upper edge of said swingable swingable gate is given gate so that when said a substantially sudden motion a fluttering action is imparted to said sloping member.

2. A combination as defined in claim 1 wherein the upper surface of said sloping member has a convex curvature.

3. The combination as defined in claim 1 wherein the upper portion of the upper surface of said sloping member has a convex curvature.

4. The combination as defined in claim 3 wherein the lower portion of the upper surface of said sloping member is substantially a plane surface.

Reference WILSON MARKS STEWART.

s Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Number