WO2010056617A1

WO2010056617A1 - Roll-out kit for consumer service cash handling machine and installation method

Info

Publication number: WO2010056617A1
Application number: PCT/US2009/063681
Authority: WO
Inventors: Robert E. Gunst; Joseph P. Hanus
Original assignee: Talaris Inc.
Priority date: 2008-11-12
Filing date: 2009-11-09
Publication date: 2010-05-20

Abstract

A kit and method for installing and servicing a consumer accessible cash handling machine (10) that is supported on front and rear wheels (56) in wall cavity (21), has two spaced apart tracks (41, 42) which are secured to a supporting surface within the wall cavity (21). Two respective ramps (47) are positioned and secured at the front of said spaced apart tracks (41, 42) to receive the front wheels (56) of the cash handling machine (10) in depressions (48) when the cash handling machine (10) is positioned in the wall cavity (21) to allow installation of a mat (26). The machine is then moved forward so that the front wheels are on the mat (26) and the rear wheels are on the tracks (41, 42).

Description

ROLL-OUT KIT FOR CONSUMER SERVICE CASH HANDLING MACHINE AND INSTALLATION METHOD

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] The benefit of priority based on U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/113,776 filed November 12, 2008, is claimed herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present invention relates to consumer-accessible cash handling machines and methods for installing and servicing the machine .

BACKGROUND ART

[0003] In this type of machine, cash usually in the form of coinage, is placed in an intake mechanism, such as a hopper, and is directed to collection receptacles while providing the user with merchandise, a voucher or a form of credit, on a memory card, for example, or even cash in the form of notes. To service the machine, it is necessary to gain access to side doors enclosing the cash collection area inside the machine.

[0004] Various other types of machines for receiving cash and providing the consumer with a credit have been known, including ATM machines. ATM's have been installed in walls of a bank or other financial business, such that a machine is accessible outside of the bank or other financial business both during banking hours and after hours. The machine is usually only accessible for servicing only from the back side, from inside the bank or other financial business. Such a machine is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Pub. No. US2004/0099729. Other types of ATM enclosures are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos . 4,558,650 and 4,577,562. With consumer-accessible cash handling machines, there may be installations in which the machine will not be accessible from behind a wall, in the case of a supermarket, for example. There remains a need for a new type of installation for a consumer accessible coin cash handling machine, which is easy, and convenient to service, to maintain and to remove the accumulated coinage. The machine should be capable of dispensing a voucher, a credit to the depositor or notes and a small amount of change to the consumer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] The invention relates to a kit and method for installing and servicing a consumer-accessible cash handling machine in which two spaced apart tracks are disposed on a supporting surface within a wall cavity, and the machine is supported on wheels or equivalent devices for moving the machine. The machine is moved into the wall cavity until the front of the machine is lifted to permit installation of a mat in front of the machine and the wall cavity.

[0006] For servicing the machine, the mat is positioned in the front of the tracks to assure that the front of the machine will be moved on the mat, while the rear is moved on the tracks. The mat has two spaced apart grooves aligned with the tracks in the wall cavity to allow the machine to be pulled forward for accessing a side door opening to a cash collection area inside the machine. The wall cavity opening is sized so that when the machine is installed, access to the side doors is blocked. [0007] In a further aspect of the invention, the mat comprises a base and an insert with a graphic display such as a company- logo. The mat has a base with a depression between the two grooves to receive an insert having graphic advertising or a logo. The mat is secured to the front of the tracks to prevent movement of the mat as the machine is rolled out for service.

[0008] In further aspects of apparatus, there is a stop member at the front of the tracks, the stop member having a groove and the machine is provided with a lever on the front with one end being received in groove to secure the machine in the wall cavity. A front plate is fastened over the lever to conceal it and make it inaccessible to customers.

[0009] In contrast to the prior art, the machine is accessible from the front or customer side, while shielding the service doors for security from access from the customer side.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Fig. 1 is a front perspective view of a consumer self- service cash handling machine installed in a wall cavity.

[0011] Fig. 2 is a front perspective view showing the cash handling machine rolled out on the mat with the side door open to access a cash collection area.

[0012] Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a mat for attachment to the installed machine.

[0013] Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a track assembly that is placed in the wall cavity. [0014] Fig. 4A is a detail of one front corner of the track assembly seen in Fig. 4.

[0015] Fig. 5 is a front view showing the wheels on the two front corners of the machine and a latching lever;

[0016] Fig. 5A is a perspective view of an individual wheel assembly;

[0017] Fig. 6 is a top perspective view of the track assembly and an auxiliary sheet material for rolling the machine into the wall cavity;

[0018] Fig. 7 is a back perspective view of the machine just before it is rolled across a cross bar stop and onto the track;

[0019] Fig. 8 is a front perspective detail view showing how the mat is connected to the track assembly.

[0020] Fig. 9 is a front perspective detail view showing the lever engaging a retaining slot .

[0021] Fig. 10 is a front perspective detail view showing a position of machine when attaching face plate.

[0022] Fig. 11 is a side perspective detail view where the front wheels roll up a ramp to a depression in which they rest.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] Fig. 1 shows a consumer-service cash redemption machine 10 in an installation in accordance with the present invention. The machine 10 is housed in a cabinet enclosure 11 having a faςade 12. The faςade 12 has an opening 14 for viewing a visual display screen 15. Below this screen 15 are two buttons "A" and "B" for allowing the user to enter selections of items on the screen 15. To the right of the display is an area for an advertising display 16 and below that a printout slot 17 for receiving a receipt or other printable matter that exits a printer installed inside the enclosure 11. Just below the printer output slot 17 is a coin intake area 18 with a mechanism for feeding coins into the machine 10. Beneath a customer shelf 19 is a coin return opening 20.

[0024] The faςade 12 in Fig. 1 is framed by the wall opening 21 in which the machine is situated. As seen in Fig. 2, the machine 10 is situated in a wall cavity 22 or alcove in a wall 23 or other barrier.

[0025] Fig. 2 shows the side doors 31, 32 of the machine opened for access to cash receptacles in a cash collection area 33 or to service other mechanisms in the machine 10. The mechanisms seen in the cash collection area are clips 34 for holding coin bags for respective denominations. The machine 10 is rolled out of the wall cavity 22 on front wheel assemblies 51, 52 (Figs. 1-2) having wheels that travel in spaced apart grooves 24, 25 (Fig. 1) in a mat 26 positioned as an apron in front of the machine 10. Between the grooves 24, 25 is an insert 27 (Fig. 1) having a graphic display 28 such as a logo or other graphic material. The insert 27 is placed in a depression 29 in a base 26a of the mat 26 as seen in Fig. 3. The mat 26 has an attachment strip 30 (Fig. 3) for attachment to the tracks 41, 42 under the machine 10, as will be explained further below.

[0026] When the access doors 31, 32 are opened, as seen in Fig. 2, access is allowed to the cash collection area 33 to remove full coin bags or other receptacles and allow their replacement with empty ones. The access doors, 31, 32 could also be opened to service mechanisms inside the machine 10. [0027] Referring next to Fig. 4, there is shown a track assembly 40 which is one part of a kit for installing the machine 10 in a wall cavity 21. The track assembly 40 has two spaced apart tracks 41, 42 joined and spaced by a cross piece 43 at the back and by a transversely extending stop member 44 at the front that secures the track assembly and itself to the floor with anchor screws 39 (Fig. 4A) . Other types of fasteners or adhesives could also be used for this purpose. There is a slot 45 positioned in the right half of the stop member 44 to receive an end 46a of a lever 46 seen in Fig. 5. The lever 46 is pivotably mounted near the bottom front of the machine and is pivoted to one side or another to latch and release, respectively, a bottom edge 46a of the lever 46 is the retaining slot 45 in the stop member 44.

[0028] Fig. 4A shows a detail of one corner of the stop member 44, the unit on the corner being a mirror image. Each one of a pair of ramps 47 having a depression 48 is aligned with a respective interior track 41, 42, and an exterior groove 24, 25 in the mat. Each ramp 47 is secured in front of a respective track 41, 42 and is further secured to the floor when anchor screws 39 are installed in the stop member 44. A post 49 rises from the base of one track 41 within a lateral groove 50 in the stop member 44 for receiving an attachment strip 30 as described below.

[0029] Fig. 5A shows one of four wheel assemblies 51-54 that are attached to the four corners on the base of the cabinet 11. The cabinet 11 can be temporarily lifted upwardly with jacks or other various known devices to create space for attachment of the wheel assemblies 51-54. Each assembly 51-54 has a T- shaped bracket 55 seen in Fig. 5A. Each wheel 56 is mounted for rotation on one end of cross bar of "T" and a horizontally disposed flange 57 is attached in a corner between the other end of cross bar of the "T" and the stem of the "T," to receive a threaded fastener 58 which extends through the flange 57 into a bottom corner of the machine cabinet 11. The wheel assemblies 51-54 are provided in the kit of the invention to be fastened to the four corners of the machine. The wheel assemblies 51-54 could also be installed in the machine as originally manufactured. Although, wheels are disclosed herein, it is contemplated that equivalents would include rollers, skids or sliding mechanisms.

[0030] In a method of installation, the first two actions are installing the track assembly in the wall cavity and providing wheels on the machine 10. Then, if protecting the existing floor surface or floor covering is necessary, a flat piece of sheet material 60 that allows easy rolling of the machine 10 is abutted up to the stop 44 as seen in Fig. 6. The machine 10 is then rolled into the wall cavity 22 with the back wheels 56 rolling over the ramp members 47 and onto the tracks 41, 42 of the track assembly 40 as seen in Fig. 7. The machine 10 is then pushed in until the wheels 56 in the front wheel assemblies 51, 52 go up the ramps 47 and into the depressions 48 as seen in Fig. 11. The mat 26 is then attached by placing the attachment strip 30 on the mat over the upstanding retaining posts 49 on the track assembly 40. The attachment strip 30 of the mat 20 has one round hole 30a and an elongated hole 30b to provide some tolerance in the fit over the retaining posts 49. The mat 20 is attached by fitting the attachment strip 30 over the retaining posts 49. The mat 20 serves as an apron for the machine and generally defines a customer service area. The mat 20 can also be detached by service personnel when desired, by lifting the attachment strip off of the retaining posts 49. After the mat is installed, the machine 10 is moved forward to the position seen in Fig. 1, with the front wheel assemblies in the grooves 24, 25 on the mat 20. The machine 10 can then, when unsecured be pulled forward for servicing and access, with the front wheels traveling the in the grooves 24, 25 in the mat 20 and the rear wheels traveling on the tracks 41, 42. The stop member 44 prevents the machine 10 from being traveling completely out of the wall cavity 22 when being moved forward. [0031] After the machine is pulled forward to the position seen in Fig. 1, it can be secured in place by pivoting the lever 46 into place with the lower edge 46a being inserted in the retaining slot 45, as seen in Fig. 9. This secures the machine in a fixed position. It should be apparent that in other embodiments the slot could be provided in a portion of the floor itself or in an insert therein. A face plate 70 is then attached to the front of the machine 10 to cover the lever 46 from visibility from the front of the machine 10 where customers place cash into the machine. The top portion of the lever 46 can be protected either by another face plate or by the facade 12 of the machine, which can be opened to release the lever 46 for moving of the machine 10 to the position shown in Fig. 2.

[0032] The invention provides interior tracks 41, 42 in the wall cavity and exterior grooves 24, 25 in the apron of sufficient length to allow the machine to be rolled in and completely out of the wall cavity 22 in a linear fashion. The apron 26 is removeable and the inserts 27 in the apron are interchangeable . [0033] It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other modifications might be made to these embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the following claims.

Claims

CLAIMS We claim:

1. A method for installing and servicing a consumer accessible cash handling machine in a wall cavity, wherein the machine is supported for translational movement and the machine has a side access door to a cash collection area, the method comprising: positioning two spaced apart tracks on a supporting surface within the wall cavity, securing the tracks to the supporting surface; moving the cash handling machine into the wall cavity while at least partly supported on the tracks; and elevating a front side of the machine at an opening to the wall cavity to allow installation of a front edge of a mat underneath a front of the machine; wherein the front of the machine can then be moved out of the wall cavity onto the mat while rear of the machine remains supported on the tracks; and securing the machine to prevent the machine from further movement except by authorized personnel.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising installing a stop member at the front end of the tracks, the stop member including ramps aligned with wheels of the machine, such that front wheels are elevated off the floor surface when the machine is moved to a position inside the wall cavity during installation.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the securing includes operating a lever on the cash handling machine to engage a slot in a stop member extending between the two spaced apart tracks to secure the cash handling machine in the wall cavity.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising blocking the lever from access by customers after the cash handling machine in the wall cavity

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the machine has two front wheels and two rear wheels, and the method further comprising : installing the mat with two spaced apart grooves in the mat aligned with the respective tracks in the wall cavity; and moving the front wheels in the grooves on the mat and moving the rear wheels on the respective tracks, when the machine is rolled in and out of the wall cavity for servicing.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising securing the mat to the front of the tracks to prevent movement of the mat as the machine is rolled out for service.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the wall cavity opening is sized so that when the machine is installed, access to the side doors is blocked.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the machine is allowed to be accessible from the front side by customers, while the machine is positioned in the wall cavity so as block access to a side access door by customers.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising attaching four wheel assemblies to two respective front corners and two respective rear corners of the machine to provide wheels for moving the cash handling machine.

10. A kit for installing and servicing a consumer accessible cash handling machine that is supported on front wheels and rear wheels in a wall cavity, the kit comprising: two spaced apart tracks which are disposed on a supporting surface within the wall cavity; two respective ramps for positioning at the front of said spaced apart tracks and in alignment therewith to receive the front wheels of the cash handling machine when the cash handling machine is positioned at a furthest point into the wall cavity, such that the front wheels are elevated for allowing installation of a mat underneath a front side of the machine ; and means for securing the spaced apart tracks and the respective ramps to the supporting surface.

11. The kit of claim 10, wherein the means for securing includes a stop member that connects to the two ramps and means for fastening the stop member to the floor; and wherein the cross member has a slot for receiving an end of a lever on the cash handling machine to secure the cash handling machine in a position in the wall cavity with the front wheels positioned in the depressions.

12. The kit of claim 10, further comprising four wheel assemblies for attachment to corners of the machine to provide the front wheels and the rear wheels for the cash handling machine .

13. The kit of claim 10, further comprising: a mat having a pair of spaced apart grooves, wherein the spaced apart grooves are aligned with the spaced apart tracks; and wherein the grooves are of sufficient length to allow the machine to be moved outside of the wall cavity to allow access to a side door opening to a cash collection area inside the machine .

14. The kit of claim 13, wherein the mat further comprises a base and an insert with a graphic display between the two grooves.

15. The kit of claim 13, wherein the means for securing includes a stop member that connects to the two ramps and means for fastening the stop member to the floor,- and wherein the stop member has a slot for receiving an end of a lever on the cash handling machine to secure the cash handling machine in a position in the wall cavity with the front wheels positioned in the depressions.

16. The kit of claim 15, further comprising means for attaching the mat to a front of the two tracks to a front of the stop member.

17. The kit of claim 10, further comprising four wheel assemblies for attachment to corners of the machine to provide the front wheels and the rear wheels for the cash handling machine .