US3756363A

US3756363A - Change dispensing apparatus

Info

Publication number: US3756363A
Application number: US00180816A
Authority: US
Inventors: A Dolejs; F Novak; K Schreiber
Original assignee: Ardac Inc
Current assignee: Ardac Inc; Ardac USA Inc
Priority date: 1971-09-15
Filing date: 1971-09-15
Publication date: 1973-09-04
Anticipated expiration: 1990-09-04

Abstract

Apparatus for accepting a piece of paper currency, performing a validating operation on the currency, and, if the currency is valid, dispensing an equal value of coins. The coin dispensing portion of the apparatus includes a hopper which receives randomly oriented coins, an inclined rotating wheel for taking coins individually from the hopper to a discharge chute, a stop arrangement for holding the desired number of coins in the chute until the dispensing is called for, and a sensor for detecting when the coin chute is filled to stop the rotating feed disc.

Description

United States Patent [1 1 Novak et a]. Sept. 4, 1973 CHANGE DISPENSING APPARATUS Primary ExaminerStanley H. Tollberg [75] Inventors: Frank A. Novak, Seven Hills; ".'?F PF" Q h dw w-.Oldham et Kenneth T. Schreiber, Bedford; Anthony H. Dolejs, Bedford Heights, all of Ohio [57] ABSTRACT Assignee: AI'dac/USA l' i Apparatus for accepting a piece of paper currency, per- 5 Chesterland Ohm forming a validating operation on the currency, and, if [22] Filed; Sept 5 7 the currency is valid, dispensing an equal value of coins. The coin dispensing portion of the apparatus in- [21] PP 180,816 cludes a hopper which receives randomly oriented coins, an inclined rotating wheel for taking coins indi- 52 us. Cl 194/4 0 viduhlly from the PP to a discharge chute step 51 int. Cl. G07f 7/04 arrangement for holding the desired number of wins in [58] Field 0: Search 194/4 R, 4 c, 10; the chute until the dispensing is called for, and sens 133/8, 3 for detecting when the coin chute is filled to stop the rotating feed disc.

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 11 Clam, 6 Draw F'gures 3,173,431 3/1965 Chichester et a1. 133/8 R PATENTEDsu 4mm 3.756363 sum 10F 4 I INVENTORS FRANK A. NOVAK BY KENNETH T. SCHREIBER ANTHONY H. DOLEJS ATTORNEYS PATENTED SEP 4 SHEET 2 OF 4 FRANK A. NOVAK KENNETH T. SCHREIBER ANTHONY H. DOLEJS ATTORNEYS mimosa 4am 3.756363 sum 3 a; 4

INVENTORS FRANK A. NOVAK KENNETH T. SCHREIBER BY ANTHONY H. DOLEJS ATTORNEYS PATENTEDSEP 4mm 3.756363 SHEH & 0F 4 PAYO UT SOLENOID NOTE ACCEPTOR FIG.6

27 VAC POWER SUPPLY INVENTORS FRANK A. NOVAK KENNETH T. SCHREIBER BY ANTHONY H. DOLEJS ATTORNEYS CHANGE DISPENSING APPARATUS This application relates to a change dispensing apparatus and more particularly to apparatus which will dispense a predetermined number of coins upon detection of a valid piece of paper currency, such as a dollar bill.

Various bill changer devices are known. However, these devices generally require that the supply of coins be arranged in stacked columns, thus requiring additional handling of the coins. Also, many of the prior bill changer devices are subject to jamming if a bent coin is encountered.

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide apparatus which will examine a piece of paper currency to determine its authenticity and, if the currency is valid, will dispense a number of coins equal in value to the currency unit.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a bill changer device which is capable of receiving a supply of coins in a randomly oriented manner.

Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of a bill changer device which employs a simple coin dispensing mechanism which is not subject to jamming.

As will become apparent in the following detailed description, the above and other objects of the invention are achieved by providing a bill changing apparatus which includes a currency validating device, a coin dispensing device having a hopper for receiving a supply of coins in a randomly oriented fashion, a coin discharge chute, an inclined rotating wheel for moving individual ones of the coins from the hopper to a discharge chute, and a pair of movable stops adapted to enter into the chute to hold a selected number of coins until they are dispensed and, during the dispensing cycle, to prevent the passage of further coins down the chute.

For a more complete understanding of the invention and the objects and advantages thereof reference should be had to the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings wherein there is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the bill changing apparatus of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear elevational view of the bill changing device, with the rear plate removed for clarity;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showing the coin pay out mechanism;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are fragmentary sectional views taken along the lines 4-4 and 5-5, respectively, of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 6 is a schematic showing of the control circuit of the bill changing device of the present invention.

Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 2, a bill changing device, which is designated generally by the reference numeral 10, is housed within an enclosure 12. Mounted within the enclosure is a paper currency validating device 14. One device which is suitable for this purpose is shown in US. Pat. No. 3,457,421, granted July 22, 1969 for Paper Security Validation Apparatus." The validating device 14 has either an opening or a movable tray 15 for receiving a single piece of paper currency, such as a dollar bill, and the device 14 performs a test on the piece of currency to determine the authenticity thereof. If the currency is authentic, the device 14 retains it and transmits a vend signal. The coin dispensing mechanism 16 is also housed with the enclosure l2.

The coin dispensing mechanism, which will be described in more detail below, holds a supply of coins, for example, dimes, and when a vend signal is received from the validating device 14 dispenses a predetermined number of coins through a pay out opening 18. The validating device 14 and the coin dispensing mechanism 16 are under the control of a control circuit 20.

The coin feed mechanism 16 is illustrated in greater detail in FIGS. 2-4. A hopper 22 is provided for receiving a supply of coins. The hopper has an opening 24 at its lower end and a coin feed mechanism 26 is positioned immediately below this opening, the feed mechanism being supported by a plate 28. As will be seen from FIG. 2, the mounting plate 28 is inclined. The coin feed mechanism 26 has a disc 30 which is provided with a series of pins 32 at equal intervals near the circumferance of the disc 30 and a central hub 34. An annular wall 36 surrounds the disc 30 and supports a cover plate 38. The distance between the hub 34 and the surrounding annular wall 36 and the distance between adjacent ones of the pins 32 are each slightly greater than the diameter of the coin so that only one coin can be received in the area between adjacent pins 32. The disc 30 is affixed to a shaft 40 which extends through suitable bushings 42 in the mounting plate 28 and is connected to a driving motor 44 to rotate the disc in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 3. The lower portion 46 of the disc 30 is aligned with the opening 24 of the hopper 22 and the cover plate 38 is also provided with an opening in this region so that coins may pass from the hopper 22 onto the rotating disc 30, one coin being received between each adjacent pair of pins 32. As the disc 30 is rotated the coins are moved upwardly to the top portion 48 of the feed mechanism 28 where a finger 50 engages the coin to direct it off of the rotating disc 3 and into a coin chute 52. As will be seen from FIG. 4, the finger 50 projects inwardly toward the hub 34 but is spaced from the disc 30 so as to clear the pins 32. The coin chute 52 has a pair of

side walls

56 and 58 which are mounted to the support plate 28 and which extend downwardly in parallel fashion to form an elongated channel 54. A cover plate 60 is provided at the upper end of the

walls

56 and 58. The lower end of the chute 52 terminates immediately above the coin pay out opening 18. One wall 58 of the coin chute 52 has two spaced

openings

62 and 64. A bar 66 is pivotally mounted at its midpoint by a pin 68 and extends along the outer side of the wall 58, the ends of the bar being provided with

pawls

70 and 72 which are aligned, respectively, with the

openings

62 and 64. A solenoid 74 is connected to the bar to lock the bar between the first position shown in solid outline in FIG. 3 where the pawl 72 projects into the channel 54 of the coin slot and to a second position shown in dotted outline in FIG. 3 where the pawl 70 projects into the channel 54 of the coin chute. The arrangement is such that either the pawl 70 or the pawl 72 blocks passage of coins through the coin chute. It will be noted that the distance between the

side walls

56 and 58 of the coin chute 54 is, preferably, only slightly greater than the diameter of the coins to be dispensed while the distance between the support plate 28 and the chute cover 60 is only slightly greater than the thickness of the coin to be dispensed so that coins are held in the chute 52 in a single file order. The two

pawls

70 and 72 are spaced apart from one another by a distance approximately equal to the sum of the diameters of the total number of coins which are to be dispensed at one time. Thus, if the apparatus is intended to dispense l dimes for a dollar the

pawls

70 and 72 will be located apart by a distance equal to times the diameter of a dime.

A coin detector is provided at the upper end of the chute 52 to prevent operation of the assembly when there are insufficient coins to make change for the piece of paper currency. One form of the detector which may be used is illustrated in FIG. 5 where the light source 76 mounted in a housing 78 is supported by the plate 28 with the light beam being directed through an opening 80 in the support plate to the interior of the chute 52 and a photodetector 82 being mounted on the cover plate 60 of the chute 52 and aligned with the opening 80.

As will become apparent below, the motor 44 operates only when no coins are blocking the passage of light from the source 76 to the photodetector 82. This control is effected by means of the circuit shown in FIG. 6. Assuming that there is a sufficient number of coins in the hopper 22 and that the rocker arm 66 is in the position shown in FIG. 3 where the lower pawl 72 protrudes into the channel 54, upon acceptance of a valid piece of currency by the note acceptor a vend signal will be transmitted from the acceptor 14 to the pay out solenoid 74 causing the solenoid to operate shifting the rocker arm 66 to its opposite position. The coins within the channel 54 below the pawl 62 are now released to fall into the outlet hopper 18. After a sufficient length of time has elapsed to permit the coins to be discharged, the solenoid 74 again moves to its original position. Coins are now free to travel down the chute to the pawl 72. The opening 80 will now be uncovered permitting light from the lamp 76 to strike the photodetector 82 which, as is shown in FIG. 6, may consist of the phototranistor Q7. As a result, Q7 becomes conductive causing Q6 to also conduct bringing the base of transistor Q2 to ground. This, in turn, causes the transistor Q3 to switch to a conductive state producing a signal through resistor R1], diode D6 and resistor R13 to the triac SCSl. SCSl now condusts energizing the motor 44. Obviously, as individual coins move down the chute they will temporarily interrupt the light path to the phototransistor Q7. In order to prevent this pulsing action from affecting motor operation the capacitor C4 is provided and serves to smooth the signal to the silicone control rectifier SCSI. When Q3 conducts it also biases transistor Q4 into a conductive state which furnishes a signal through the conductor 86 to the note acceptor to prevent the acceptance of a second piece of paper currency until the vend cycle has been completed.

The conduction Q3 also provides a charging current for the capacitor C2 across the resistor R8. When the capacitor C2 has charged to a sufficient level the unijunction transistor Q5 will be biased on, in turn biasing on the silicone control rectifier SCRl and completing a circuit for the out-of-change lamp 84. Conduction of SCRl also serves to ground the signal to SCRl through the diode D5 and SCRl so that SCRl is rendered nonconductive. It will be understood that the charging time of capacitor C2 is greater than the normal length of time required for the coin feed mechanism 26 to supply sufficient coins to fill the chute 52. Thus, the out-ofchange light 84 will be energized and the motor 44 stopped if operation of the motor extends beyond the set period of time, indicating that there are no more coins in the hopper 22. In this state of events transistor Q3 remains conducting as is the transistor Q4 so that an inhibit signal continues to be supplied to the note acceptor 14 to prevent further operation of the device.

While the invention has been described with particular reference to a device which disposes a number of coins equal in value to the value of the paper currency received, it should be understood that the device may also be used in connection with vending apparatus. Thus, for example, if the device of the present invention is to be used with vending apparatus which dispenses an article having a value of 60 cents, the currency validation 14 can be designed to accept a dollar bill and the change dispensing mechanism 16 to dispense four dimes. The vend signal from the validator which actuates the solenoid 74 will also actuate the article dispensing apparatus.

While only the best known embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described in detail herein, the invention is not so limited thereto ot thereby. Reference should therefore be had to the appended claims in determining the true scope of the invention,

We claim:

1. A currency changing device, comprising:

means to determine the validity of a piece of paper currency;

a hopper for receiving a supply of coins and having an opening at its lower end;

a coin discharge chute the interior of which can receive and pass coins;

a coin feed mechanism for receiving coins from the hopper opening and transferring coins one at a time to the discharge chute;

a pivotal rocker arm having a pawl at each end thereof operatively engaged with the discharge chute to release a predetermined number of coins from the chute the pawls being of such size as to substantially traverse and block one dimension of the interior of the coin discharge chute when actuated and a control circuit responsive to the validity determining means to actuate the gate means upon receipt of a valid piece of currency.

2. The device according to claim 1 further including a drive motor for the coin feed mechanism and a light source and an associated light sensor positioned near the top of the coin discharge chute for determining when the number of coins in the chute exceeds the predetermined number, the control circuit interfaced with the light sensor so as to actuate the drive motor only when the number of coins in the chute does not exceed the predetermined number.

3. The device according to claim 2 wherein the control circuit includes a time delay charging capacitor and a solid state circuit element operative to stop the motor after a predetermined time interval of operation.

4. The device according to claim 3 wherein the control circuit further includes means to prevent operation of the validity determining means until at least the predetermined number of coins have been supplied to the chute.

5. The device according to claim 1 wherein the coin feed mechanism comprises a disc mounted in an inclined position and rotatable about the center of the disc, the upper surface of the disc being provided with a plurality of coin receiving regions adjacent the periphery of the disc, the disc being positioned relative to the hopper opening so that coins pass through the opening into the lowermost of the coin receiving regions, means to rotate the disc, and means to direct coins from the uppermost portion of the disc to the discharge chute.

6. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the control circuit has associated therewith a smoothing capacitor operative to negate the effects of any false signals created by the photo transistor due to the passage of coins within the coins discharge chute.

7. The device according to claim 6 wherein the distance between the pawls is slightly greater than the sum of the diameters of the predetermined number of coins.

8. Apparatus for accepting a piece of paper currency and dispensing an equal value of coins therefor, comprising:

a paper currency validating device for accepting the piece of currency and determining the validity thereof, the device producing a signal upon acceptance of a valid piece of currency;

a supply hopper of receiving a quantity of coins;

a discharge chute;

a pair of pivotally movable stops adapted to enter substantially the full width of the chute to prevent passage of coins therethrough, the stops being spaced apart by a distance substantially equal to the sums of the diameters of the coins required to equal the value of the paper currency;

means to move one or the other of the stops into the chute;

a coin feed mechanism for transferring coins one at a time from the supply hopper to the discharge chute; and

control means responsive to the signal from the validity device to actuate the stop moving means to release the coins between the two stops.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the coin feed mechanism comprises an inclined rotating disc having a plurality of coin receiving regions on its upper surface and positioned to receive coins from the supply hopper and transfer the same to the chute and a drive motor for the disc, the apparatus also including means to detect the presence of a coin in the chute above the upper stop and additional control means responsive to the detecting means to operate the motor only when no coin is detected by the detecting means.

10. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the additional control means includes a time delay resistorcapacitor circuit controlling a solid state switching element to prevent operation of the motor beyond a predetermined time period.

1 1. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the additional control means includes means to prevent operation of the validating device except when sufficient coins are available, as determined by the detecting means.

Claims

2. The device according to claim 1 further including a drive motor for the coin feed mechanism and a light source and an associated light sensor positioned near the top of the coin discharge chute for determining when the number of coins in the chute exceeds the predetermined number, the control circuit interfaced with the light sensor so as to actuate the drive motor only when the number of coins in the chute does not exceed the predetermined number.
3. The device according to claim 2 wherein the control circuit includes a time delay charging capacitor and a solid state circuit element operative to stop the motor after a predetermined time interval of operation.
4. The device according to claim 3 wherein the control circuit further includes means to prevent operation of the validity determining means until at least the predetermined number of coins have been supplied to the chute.
5. The device according to claim 1 wherein the coin feed mechanism comprises a disc mounted in an inclined position and rotatable about the center of the disc, the upper surface of the disc being provided with a plurality of coin receiving regions adjacent the periphery of the disc, the disc being positioned relative to the hopper opening so that coins pass through the opening into the lowermost of the coin receiving regions, means to rotate the disc, and means to direct coins from the uppermost portion of the disc to the discharge chute.
6. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the control circuit has associated therewith a smoothing capacitor operative to negate the effects of any false signals created by the photo transistor due to the passage of coins within the coins discharge chute.
7. The device according to claim 6 wherein the distance between the pawls is slightly greater than the sum of the diameters of the predetermined number of coins.
8. Apparatus for accepting a piece of paper currency and dispensing an equal value of coins therefor, comprising: a paper currency validating device for accepting the piece of currency and determining the validity thereof, the device producing a signal upon acceptance of a valid piece of currency; a supply hopper of receiving a quantity of coins; a discharge chute; a pair of pivotally movable stops adapted to enter substantially the full width of the chute to prevEnt passage of coins therethrough, the stops being spaced apart by a distance substantially equal to the sums of the diameters of the coins required to equal the value of the paper currency; means to move one or the other of the stops into the chute; a coin feed mechanism for transferring coins one at a time from the supply hopper to the discharge chute; and control means responsive to the signal from the validity device to actuate the stop moving means to release the coins between the two stops.
9. Apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the coin feed mechanism comprises an inclined rotating disc having a plurality of coin receiving regions on its upper surface and positioned to receive coins from the supply hopper and transfer the same to the chute and a drive motor for the disc, the apparatus also including means to detect the presence of a coin in the chute above the upper stop and additional control means responsive to the detecting means to operate the motor only when no coin is detected by the detecting means.
10. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the additional control means includes a time delay resistor-capacitor circuit controlling a solid state switching element to prevent operation of the motor beyond a predetermined time period.
11. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the additional control means includes means to prevent operation of the validating device except when sufficient coins are available, as determined by the detecting means.