WO2024075493A1 - Paper sheet discharge accumulation device and reflux-type paper sheet processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided are a paper sheet discharge accumulation device and a reflux-type paper sheet processing device that prevent a paper sheet drawn from a reflux unit from causing accumulation failure on a dispensing tray. The present invention comprises: a discharge conveyance path 510 on which a paper sheet drawn from a reflux unit 30, 40 is conveyed to a discharge tray 700 with its short side at the head; and a shaping mechanism 550 that performs shaping such that the short-side shape of the paper sheet conveyed on the discharge conveyance path becomes a predetermined shape over the entire length in the longitudinal direction, and discharges the paper sheet onto the discharge tray.

Description

Paper discharge/accumulation device and recycling type paper processing device

The present invention relates to a paper discharge/accumulation device and a recirculation type paper processing device.

2. Description of the Related Art As a type of banknote handling device that is equipped in a banknote handling device such as a vending machine that has the function of providing various goods and services by accepting inserted banknotes, a gaming media lending machine in an amusement arcade, a ticket vending machine, a deposit and withdrawal device, or a currency exchange machine, a recycle type that is capable of taking in, storing, and dispensing banknotes of multiple denominations is known.
A recycling type banknote processing device is equipped with a banknote storage unit for storing banknotes prepared in advance for dispensing or banknotes inserted during operation by denomination or in a mixed denomination state.
The banknote storage unit includes a recycling banknote storage unit that stores banknotes while also having the function of dispensing banknotes to the outside as change, and a recovered banknote storage unit (recovery box) that recovers all banknotes in the banknote processing device at the end of business hours, etc.

A known example of a recycling type banknote storage unit is a type that stores banknotes between tapes that are wrapped around the outer circumferential surface of a recycling drum in a spiral shape, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, "Banknote Handling Device."
Furthermore, the device described in this document is equipped with only one deposit/withdrawal unit, and deposited bills and withdrawn bills (change bills) are deposited into the machine and withdrawn out of the machine through this deposit/withdrawal unit.
When the bills stacked on the outer peripheral surface of the return drum via the tapes are to be paid out as change, the return drum is rotated in the payout direction and each tape is sent out in the payout direction to send out the bills on the outer peripheral surface of the return drum one by one, and the bills are temporarily stored in a stacked state on the outer peripheral surface of the bill storage drum before being paid out toward the deposit/withdrawal section.

In addition, the paper processing device described in Patent Document 2 (JP Patent No. 6450041) is configured to have a dispensing port for dispensing change separate from a deposit/withdrawal port for depositing and returning banknotes, and to dispense the change directly from a recycling banknote storage unit to the dispensing port. In this configuration, when dispensing multiple banknotes as change, the banknotes are discharged one by one from the recycling banknote storage unit to the dispensing port, and the second and subsequent banknotes are sequentially discharged after the user removes the first banknote. However, this type of device has a problem in that it takes a long time to dispense all the banknotes, which increases the burden on the user and reduces the operating rate of the device.
In response to this, there is a type of machine that accumulates bills dispensed one by one from a recycling bill storage unit in a continuous stack on a dispensing tray provided at a dispensing port dedicated to dispensing, and allows all bills to be removed from the dispensing tray at once after discharge and accumulation are completed, thereby shortening the waiting time of users. However, in a recycling bill storage unit equipped with a recycling drum, bills are held by wrapping them around the outer periphery of the recycling drum, so that each bill is curled along the longitudinal direction, and this curl remains in the bills that are dispensed. In particular, if bills that have a curled longitudinal shape that is curved upward (the longitudinal center protrudes upward and both ends are obliquely downward) are discharged one by one onto the dispensing tray, even if the bill holding lever holds down the floating rear end of the bill discharged earlier, the downwardly inclined leading end of the succeeding bill will collide with the previously accumulated bill, pushing it out of the dispensing tray and causing it to fall, resulting in a stacking failure.

In addition, if even one crumpled bill, whose stiffness (rigidity) is extremely reduced, is included among the bills discharged onto the dispensing tray, it will cause a deterioration in the alignment of the following bills as well as the posture of the bill on the dispensing tray. That is, a bill with sufficient stiffness discharged onto the dispensing tray will fall onto the dispensing tray while pushing up the bill holding lever, and after falling, will be held down by the bill holding lever. However, a crumpled bill with significantly reduced stiffness will not be able to push up the bill holding lever sufficiently during the discharge process, and will be discharged onto the dispensing tray while buckling, and will eventually stop in a buckled state in the space between the bill holding lever and the top surface of the dispensing tray, resulting in an abnormal discharge state. If a following bill is discharged in this state, the crumpled bill discharged earlier will become an obstacle and the bill will not be able to stop at the normal stacking position.
Therefore, when the banknotes for change are discharged one by one onto the dispensing tray and stacked, it is difficult to stack them in an aligned state on the dispensing tray.

JP 2016-218965 A Patent No. 6450041

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a paper discharge and stacking device and a paper recycling type paper processing device that prevent paper sheets discharged from the recycling unit from causing stacking problems on the dispensing tray.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a paper sheet discharge/accumulation device that stores transported paper sheets and discharges and accumulates paper sheets discharged from a return unit that discharges the stored paper sheets to the outside, one by one with the short side of the paper sheet at the front, onto a discharge tray, the device comprising a discharge/conveyance path that transports the paper sheets to the discharge tray, and a shaping mechanism that shapes the short side of the paper sheets transported along the discharge/conveyance path to a predetermined shape over the entire longitudinal length before discharging the paper sheets onto the discharge tray, the shaping by the shaping mechanism forming upward and downward protrusions alternately along the short side of the paper sheets, and tilting both ends of the short side of the paper sheets upward.

The present invention makes it possible to prevent poor stacking of paper sheets dispensed from the recycle unit on the dispensing tray in a recycle-type paper processing device.

[Correction under Rule 91 04.10.2023]
1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a paper processing apparatus including a paper discharge/stacking device according to an embodiment of the present invention; 13 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a main part of a second unit M2 according to the first embodiment. FIG. FIG. 4 is a front view of the molding mechanism as viewed from the discharge side. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the molding mechanism as viewed from the discharge side. 1A and 1B are front views showing the state in which a banknote has been formed into a shape with a specified stiffness by the forming mechanism, and an explanatory diagram showing the short side shape of the dispensed banknote after forming, and 1C is an explanatory diagram when the short side of the banknote has been formed into an M shape. 1A is a front perspective view showing the positional relationship between a banknote immediately after being discharged from a forming mechanism and already-stacked banknotes, and a guide member, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view showing the shape of a formed banknote. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a guide member. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a coin dispensing tray. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an outline of a change dispensing operation procedure by the banknote processing device of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a vertical cross-sectional side view of a conventional discharge, transport, and accumulation section 500P. 13A to 13D are explanatory views (side vertical sectional views) of the operation of the discharge, transport and stacking section, sequentially showing the states of a banknote up to just after the leading edge of the banknote has passed through the forming mechanism. 13(e) and (f) are explanatory diagrams (side vertical cross-sectional views) of the operation of the discharge, transporting and stacking section, showing the state just before and just after the rear end of the banknote passes through the forming mechanism, and (g) and (h) are diagrams for explaining the operational procedure by which the blades move the banknote backwards. 13(i) to 13(l) are diagrams for explaining the operational procedure in which the blades move the banknotes backward. 13(m) to 13(O) are diagrams for explaining the operational procedure in which the blades move the banknotes backward. 13 is a partial cross-sectional front view showing a state in which a banknote with significantly reduced stiffness passes through a forming mechanism in which a gap G2 is set excessively large. FIG. 13 is a front view of a main part of a banknote discharging/stacking device M2 (discharging/transporting/stacking section 800) according to the third embodiment. FIG. 1A to 1D are vertical cross-sectional side views illustrating the configuration of the banknote discharging and stacking device M2 and the discharging and scraping operations thereof. 13(e) to 13(h) are vertical cross-sectional side views illustrating the discharging and scraping operations of the banknote discharging and stacking device M2. 11(i) to 11(l) are vertical cross-sectional side views illustrating the discharging and scraping operations of the banknote discharging and stacking device M2. 13(m) to 13(o) are vertical cross-sectional side views illustrating the discharging and scraping operations performed by the banknote discharging and stacking device M2.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings.
[Banknote processing device]
"overall structure"
FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a banknote (paper sheet) processing device equipped with a banknote (paper sheet) ejection/stacking device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
In this embodiment, an apparatus for processing banknotes as an example of paper sheets will be described, but the paper sheet discharge/stacking apparatus and paper sheet processing apparatus of the present invention can also be applied to processing apparatuses for general paper sheets other than banknotes, such as coupons, tickets, securities, etc. Also, the shape of the paper sheets in this embodiment is primarily quadrilateral, such as a rectangle or a square, that is, a rectangle, but is not limited to rectangular sheets.

The recycling-type banknote processing device (hereinafter referred to as the banknote processing device) 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a means that is equipped in or attached to a banknote handling device such as a vending machine, a ticket vending machine, a gaming media lending machine in an amusement facility, a deposit/withdrawal device, or a currency exchange machine, for accepting banknotes and dispensing banknotes as change, etc.
The banknote processing device 1 will be described in detail below.
The banknote processing device 1 is broadly composed of a housing 3 that forms an exterior body, a deposit/withdrawal processing unit M that transports banknotes deposited into the housing along the longitudinal direction of the banknotes within the machine via a required route and discharges them to the outside of the machine, a banknote storage unit N that stores banknotes transported from the deposit/withdrawal processing unit M and pays out the stored banknotes to the deposit/withdrawal processing unit M, a transport mechanism that transports the banknotes via various routes, and control means (CPU, MPU, ROM, RAM, etc.) 1000 that controls various control objects.

The deposit/withdrawal processing unit M is equipped with a deposit/withdrawal port (inlet) 5 which accepts a single banknote or a bundle of banknotes including banknotes of different denominations in one go, and which serves as a return port for returning rejected deposited banknotes, a payment port (discharge port) 7 for banknotes paid out as change from the banknote storage/inlet unit N, a lump-sum deposit section (introduction section) 11 which separates the banknotes (bundle) deposited and set in the deposit/withdrawal port 5 one by one and introduces them into the device main body via a deposited banknote transport path (introduction section) 9a, and an identification section 15 which is arranged on a transport path along the deposited banknote transport path 9a and uses a combination of optical and magnetic sensors to determine the denomination, authenticity, etc. of the deposited banknotes.
The deposit/withdrawal processing unit M is made up of a first unit M1 and a second unit (banknote discharge/stacking device, lump-sum dispensing unit) M2.
The first unit M1 includes a deposit/withdrawal port (insertion port) 5, a deposited banknote transport path 9a, a lump-sum deposit section 11, a recognition section 15, an escrow section (temporary storage section) (not shown) which temporarily holds a predetermined number of deposited banknotes that have passed through the recognition section, and when acceptance is confirmed, feeds them to each of the storage sections 30, 40 and the recovery warehouse 50 (described below), and feeds them to a dispensing/accumulating section (not shown) when a cancellation or return is made due to a refund request or the like, and a dispensing/accumulating section (returned banknote stacking device) (not shown) which accumulates return banknotes and rejected banknotes (hereinafter referred to as returned banknotes) transported from the escrow section and then dispenses them to the deposit/withdrawal port 5. Note that further detailed description of the first unit M1 is omitted as it is not relevant to the present invention.
The second unit M2 constitutes the banknote ejection and stacking device of the present invention, and includes a dispensing tray (ejection tray) 700 provided at the dispensing port (ejection port) 7, and an ejection, transporting and stacking section 500 which transports, ejects and stacks ejected banknotes (ejection paper sheets) ejected one by one from each storage section 30, 40 to the ejection tray 700.
A space E for mounting the unit is provided between the first unit M1 and the banknote storage unit N, and a banknote discharge device without a lump-sum change dispensing function and a second unit M2 with a lump-sum dispensing function can be interchangeably attached and detached within this space E.
That is, a conventional bill ejection device having a different configuration from the second unit M2 can be attached to the attachment space E. This conventional bill ejection device was configured not to eject the second and subsequent bills unless a user removes the bills that have been dispensed one by one from the bill storage unit N and ejected onto the dispensing tray.
In contrast to this, the second unit M2 of the present invention, i.e., the banknote ejection and stacking device, ejects banknotes one by one continuously from the banknote storage unit N onto the payment tray, allowing the user to remove them all at once after the required number of banknotes has been stacked.

The banknote storage unit N comprises first and second recycling type banknote storage sections (recycling type banknote storage device, recycling unit) 30, 40 which store banknotes by denomination that are paid out one by one from the escrow section and transported along the stored banknote transport path 9b when the acceptance of deposited banknotes is confirmed, and a recovery box (recovered banknote storage section) 50 which is detachably attached from the front side within a storage space provided below the second recycling type banknote storage section 40 and recovers all denominations from each recycling type banknote storage section at the end of business hours, etc., and recovers high value banknotes that are not used as change and surplus banknotes that cannot be stored in each recycling type banknote storage section.
The transport mechanism includes a motor, a solenoid, pulleys, a belt, a gate, etc. for generating and transmitting a driving force for transporting the banknotes along each of the transport paths 9a, 9b and other transport paths.
The control means 1000 controls controlled objects such as the deposit/withdrawal processing unit M, the banknote storage unit N, and the transport mechanism.

In this example, the first and second recycling type banknote storage units 30, 40 each have two recycling drums (31, 35, 41, 45) that can store a maximum of 30 banknotes. Each recycling drum 31, 35, 41, 45 is a type suitable for recycling, storing banknotes between long tapes (long films) that are wrapped around the outer periphery of the drums in pairs in a spiral shape (helical shape).

<Various operations of the banknote handling device>
Next, an overview of the deposit operation, confirmation operation, withdrawal operation, and collection operation in the banknote processing device 1 shown in FIG. 1 will be described.

First, in the deposit operation, when one or more banknotes are inserted through the deposit/withdrawal port 5, the control means 1000 receives a signal from a sensor that detects the banknotes and operates the transport mechanism to take in the banknotes using the lump-sum deposit unit 11 and the deposited banknote transport path 9a. The lump-sum deposit unit 11 removes the topmost banknote from the stack of banknotes set in the deposit/withdrawal port 5 one by one and transports it to the recognition unit 15. Banknotes that are determined to be acceptable by the recognition unit 15 are transported to an escrow unit (not shown) where they are wrapped one by one around the outer periphery of the escrow drum and temporarily held, waiting for the deposit to be confirmed. The return process of banknotes temporarily held in the escrow unit is not directly related to the present invention, so a description will be omitted.

When the deposit of the deposited bills temporarily reserved in the escrow section is confirmed, the bills are sent out one by one from the escrow section, the bills used as change are stored in either of the recycling type bill storage sections 30, 40 according to denomination via a stored bill transport path 9b, and the bills not used as change are stored in a collection box 50.
When paying out banknotes as change, the banknotes stored in the flow-type banknote storage units 30, 40, which store banknotes by denomination, are taken out and identified by an identification unit 70 provided on the stored banknote transport path 9b regarding their denomination, authenticity, etc., and if the banknotes are returnable, they are paid out to the payment outlet 7 as change.
On the other hand, if the bill is determined to be non-returnable through recognition by the recognition unit 15, it is temporarily stored in the escrow unit and then transferred to the collection box 50 for storage.
At the time of collection, the bills stored in the recycling bill storage units 30, 40 at the end of business hours or the like are temporarily accumulated in an escrow unit and then stored in a collection box 50.

<Recycling banknote (paper) storage section>
The recycling-type banknote storage unit (recycling-type banknote storage device = banknote storage unit) 30, 40 generally comprises, within a casing 60, two recycling units (recycling drum units) 100, 200, and a sorting unit (flapper) 310 that switches the banknote transport path (introduction path, payout path) to one of the recycling units.
The recycling units 100 and 200 are means for receiving bills transported into the casing 60 by being driven by a motor (not shown) and for sending the stored bills out of the casing.

The recycling-type banknote storage units 30, 40 are equipped with a motor (not shown), a first recycling unit (first recycling drum unit) 100 and a second recycling unit (second recycling drum unit) 200 that operate by receiving driving force from the motor to receive and store the transported banknotes and send out the stored banknotes, a sorting means (flapper) 310 that sorts the transported banknotes to one of the recycling units by changing its attitude (position), and a sorting means drive mechanism (flapper drive mechanism) that drives the sorting unit (flapper) 310.

The configuration of the recycling-type banknote storage units (recycling-type banknote storage devices) 30, 40 will be described below.
The recycling units 30 and 40 are provided with recycling drums 31, 35 and 41, 45, respectively, which rotate forward to stack and accumulate banknotes one by one on the outer peripheral surface and discharge the banknotes one by one from the outer peripheral surface by rotating in the reverse direction. The recycling unit 30 stores, for example, 1,000 yen banknotes, and the recycling unit 40 stores 5,000 yen banknotes.
A first sorting section 61 is disposed on the stored banknote transport path 9b for sorting the deposited banknotes transported to the banknote storage unit N to the recycling-type banknote storage section 30 or 40 (collection box 50) side. A sorting piece 61a is disposed in the first sorting section 61 for sorting the deposited banknotes transported from the deposited banknote transport path 9a to the recycling-type banknote storage section 30 (intra-casing transport path 9c) or the recycling-type banknote storage section 40 (collection box 50). A second sorting section 65 and a sorting piece 65a are disposed downstream of the first sorting section 61 for sorting the deposited banknotes to the recycling-type banknote storage section 40 or the collection box 50.
Since the recycling-type banknote storage units 30, 40 have substantially the same configuration, the following description will focus on the recycling-type banknote storage unit 30.

The front-side return unit 100 comprises a flapper 310 that distributes the banknotes transported through the sorting piece 61a and the transport path 9c inside the casing to either the return drum 31 or 35, a front-side return drum (first return drum) 31 that fixes one end of each of the front-side tapes (films) T1 and T2 and winds up both tapes T1 and T2 in an overlapping state on its circumferential surface as it rotates clockwise, and a spiral winder that winds the first tape T1 supplied to the outer circumferential surface of the first return drum 31. The first return drum 31 includes a first bobbin 105 that can rotate forward and backward and holds the first tape T1 wound in a spiral shape (multi-layered shape), a plurality of guide rollers 106a that guide the first tape T1 drawn from the first bobbin to the outer circumferential surface of the first return drum, a second bobbin 110 that can rotate forward and backward and holds the second tape T2 wound in a spiral shape to be supplied to the outer circumferential surface of the first return drum 31, and a guide roller 111a that guides the second tape T2 drawn from the second bobbin to the outer circumferential surface of the first return drum. Each of the tapes T1 and T2 is wound on the outer circumferential surface of the first return drum via a route along each of the guide rollers 106a and each of the guide rollers 111a, or is sent out from the first return drum to each of the bobbins 105 and 110. The forward and reverse rotation of each of the bobbins 105 and 110 is performed by a motor not shown.

The banknotes transported from the first sorting section 61 to the first return drum 31 are introduced into the contact running area TA where the two tapes T1, T2 overlap and run at the nip section n between the guide roller 106a and guide roller 111a in the final position, and are sandwiched between the two tapes while being accumulated on the outer peripheral surface of the first return drum rotating in the winding direction (counterclockwise direction).
When the banknotes accumulated between the tapes on the outer periphery of the first return drum 31 are discharged one by one to the outside of the return unit 100, the first return drum 31 is rotated in the feed direction (counterclockwise) while each bobbin 105, 110 is rotated in the winding direction, so that each tape T1, T2 is reversed along the same route as when it was fed out from each bobbin 105, 110 and wound onto each bobbin, and the banknotes sandwiched between each tape are sequentially dispensed from the nip portion n to the first sorting section 61, the internal casing transport path 9c, and the stored banknote transport path 9b.

The final guide roller 106a for the first tape T1 and the final guide roller 111a for the second tape T2 form a nip n, and from this nip n, the two tapes T1 and T2 are wound up in an overlapping state around the outer circumferential surface of the first return drum 31.

The rear side circulation unit 200 has a similar configuration to the front side circulation unit 100, and so the same parts are given the same reference numerals and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted.
The recycle drums 31 and 35 constituting the recycle unit 100 and the recycle drums 41 and 45 constituting the recycle unit 200 curl banknotes stacked on their outer peripheries in the opposite directions. That is, the recycle drums 31 and 35 wind up banknotes when rotating clockwise, and rotate counterclockwise when dispensing. For this reason, the banknotes discharged to the dispensing tray 700 via the stored banknote transport path 9b have a curl tendency in which the longitudinal center bulges upward (both longitudinal ends are inclined downward), that is, an upward curl tendency. On the other hand, the curl tendency of the banknotes stacked on the peripheries of the recycle drums 41 and 45 is downward, with the longitudinal center bulging downward.

[Correction under Rule 91 04.10.2023]
[Banknote Discharge/Stacking Device: First Embodiment]
<Basic configuration>
Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the main part of the second unit M2 according to the first embodiment, Fig. 3 is a front view of the forming mechanism as viewed from the discharge side, Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the forming mechanism as viewed from the discharge side, Figs. 5(a) and (b) are front views showing a state in which a banknote is formed into a shape having a predetermined stiffness by the forming mechanism, and an explanatory diagram showing the short side shape of the dispensing banknote after forming, and Fig. 5(c) is an explanatory diagram of a case in which the short side of the banknote is formed into an M-shape. Fig. 6(a) is a front perspective view showing the positional relationship between the banknote immediately after being discharged from the forming mechanism and the already-stacked banknotes, and the guide member, and Fig. 6(b) is a perspective view showing the shape of the formed banknote. Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the guide member, and Fig. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the dispensing tray.

The second unit (banknote discharge/collection device, lump-sum payment unit) M2 includes a payment outlet 7, a discharge/transport/collection section 500 that transports payment banknotes (payment paper sheets) B dispensed from each storage section 30, 40 to the payment outlet 7, and a payment tray (discharge tray) 700 that is provided at the payment outlet 7 and collects (stacks) the banknotes discharged from the discharge/transport/collection section.
The second unit M2 is a means for receiving and storing the banknotes brought in, and discharging and stacking the banknotes dispensed one by one from the circulation units 30, 40, which dispense the stored banknotes to the outside, onto the dispensing tray 700.
The second unit M2 successively discharges and accumulates the dispensed change bills one by one, with the short side leading, onto the dispensing tray 700, and enables the user to remove the stack of bills all at once when accumulation is complete. Bills can be removed from the dispensing tray after all bills have been discharged.

1, 11, etc., the discharge/conveyance stacking section 500 constituting the second unit M2 includes a discharge/conveyance path 510 for discharging/conveying banknotes toward a dispensing tray, a discharge/conveyance mechanism 520 for applying a conveying force to the banknotes on the discharge/conveyance path 510, a forming mechanism (rigidity imparting means) 550 for imparting stiffness (rigidity and shape retention) to the entire length of the banknote B by forming (deforming) the short side shape (short side shape) of the dispensing banknote B (hereinafter referred to as banknote B) discharged onto the dispensing tray 700 in a predetermined manner over the entire length in the longitudinal direction, and a paper passing sensor 580 for detecting the entry of the leading end of the banknote B into the forming mechanism and the discharge of the trailing end. The banknote B that has entered the discharge/conveyance path 510 is conveyed to the forming mechanism 550 by conveying members such as a conveying roller 517 constituting the discharge/conveyance mechanism 520.
The discharge conveying path 510 includes upper and lower conveying guides 510a that sandwich the banknotes B from above and below, and a pair of conveying rollers 517 that convey the banknotes B while nipping them, so that even if the banknotes have a curled tendency or have lost their stiffness, they can be conveyed while being corrected (deformed by pressure) to a straight and flat posture. Therefore, the banknotes conveyed in the discharge conveying path have a certain degree of stiffness or more. However, the posture correction in the discharge conveying path is temporary, and the curled tendency is not completely corrected. In other words, if the curled banknotes are discharged onto the dispensing tray as they are without passing through the forming mechanism, the curled tendency will return on the dispensing tray.
The discharge conveying mechanism 520 includes rollers 512a, 512b, 512c for conveying banknotes (discharged banknotes) B that have been withdrawn from each storage section 30, 40 and risen along the stored banknote conveying path 9b to the forming mechanism 550, a flapper 514 that switches its position between a position that guides banknotes (deposited banknotes) conveyed from the first unit M1 toward the banknote storage unit N and a position that guides the conveying direction of the banknotes toward the second unit M2 (forming mechanism 550), a flapper drive means (solenoid, etc.) not shown, a discharge conveying path 510 to the forming mechanism, a conveying roller pair 517 provided on the discharge conveying path, and a motor, solenoid, etc. as a drive source for each driven object.
The rollers 512a, 512b rotate forward when transporting the deposited banknotes introduced from the first unit M1 toward each of the storage units 30, 40, and rotate reversely when sending the banknotes B to the forming mechanism 550. In the illustrated state, the flapper 514 is in a position to transport the banknotes B that have ascended on the stored banknote transport path 9b to the forming mechanism 550. The flapper 514 rotates clockwise by a required angle to transition to a position in which the stored banknote transport paths 9b and 9a are connected to each other.

<Molding mechanism>
The shaping mechanism 550 is a means for strengthening the stiffness in the longitudinal direction or correcting the shape to a shape suitable for stacking by forming the short side shape of banknotes with various curling, folding, wrinkles, etc., or banknotes with partially or entirely reduced stiffness (bad banknotes) in a predetermined manner over the entire longitudinal length. The correction effect of the forming mechanism (shaping effect, shape retention effect after forming) is not temporary, and the corrected shape is continuously maintained even after the banknotes are discharged onto the dispensing tray.
In the following embodiment, an example will be described in which banknotes that have been curled upward in the longitudinal direction by the return drum are given stiffness by being shaped by the shaping mechanism (the curling tendency is corrected). However, the shaping mechanism can also deal with banknotes with various other habits or deformations besides curling, banknotes with reduced stiffness, and other banknotes with poor properties in general that may cause poor landing or stacking problems if discharged onto the dispensing tray without going through the shaping process.

A specific example of the configuration of the forming mechanism 550 will be described with reference to FIGS.
The shape of the short side of a banknote refers to the shape of the edge of the short side of the banknote when viewed from the front (front shape) as shown in Figs. 5(a) and 5(b).
The forming mechanism 550 generally comprises a rotating shaft 552 whose both ends are supported by bearing portions 553 in a horizontal position so as to be freely rotatable, a disk-shaped (roller-shaped) central flange 605 whose axis is fixed at an appropriate position on the rotating shaft, in this example, by a portion of the rotating shaft corresponding to the widthwise center of the discharge conveying path 510, two drive rollers 555, 600 whose axis is fixed by a rotating shaft at positions on both axial sides of the central flange 605 and spaced a predetermined distance L1 apart, and disk-shaped outer flanges 607, 609 whose axis is fixed by a rotating shaft at positions axially outside each drive roller 555, 600 and spaced a predetermined distance L2 apart.
In other words, a wide central flange 605 is disposed coaxially at the intermediate position between the drive rollers 555 and 600, and narrow outer flanges 607 and 609 are disposed axially outside each of the drive rollers at a predetermined distance L2. The width W1 (6 mm) of the contact surface (outer periphery) of the central flange 605 with the bill is set wider than the width W2 (2 mm) of the contact surface of each of the outer flanges 607 and 609 with the bill. The reason for setting the width W1 of the central flange wider is that, as described later, if the width of the central flange is too small, the gap G2 between the central flange and the opening 673 of the lever 670 becomes too large, and the bill being discharged faces downwards as a result of part of the bill falling into this gap, and the strength of pushing up the lever is reduced. The ratio of the width W1 of the central flange to the width W2 of the outer flange is, for example, about 4:1.

The outer diameters of the central flange 605 and the outer flanges 607 and 609 are configured to be larger than the outer diameters of the drive rollers 555 and 600. Each flange is a disk member made of a resin, metal material, or the like that has sufficient hardness so as not to deform when it comes into contact with a banknote.
Tension rollers 556, 601 are disposed directly above each of the drive rollers 555, 600 in a one-to-one correspondence with the drive rollers, forming a nip n1 between the outer circumferential surface of each drive roller. The outer circumferential surfaces of the drive rollers 555, 600 and tension rollers 556, 601 are made of a material having sufficient frictional resistance to prevent slippage between the drive rollers 555, 600 and tension rollers 556, 601 and the banknotes.
Height positions T1 and T2 of the top of the outer circumferential surface of each of the flanges 605, 607, and 609 are located above the nip portions n1 between the drive rollers and tension rollers. Therefore, when the banknote B passes through the rotating shaft 552, it is pressed and pressed by the nip portions n1 and the flanges, and is deformed, forming the protrusions P1 and P2, the upward oblique side S2, and the protrusion P3 (see FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b)).

The extending direction of both ends of the short side of the banknote may be restricted by arranging a restricting member 611 with a gap G1 between it and the topmost portion T2 of each of the outer flanges 607, 609. The restricting member 611 may be a fixed member having a small frictional resistance against the banknote, or a roller or the like.
When a small width banknote is discharged from the forming mechanism, both ends of the short side of the banknote may rise excessively without sagging. In this state, the raised both ends of the banknotes stacked on the discharge tray may cause a collision when the next banknote is dispensed, causing the preceding banknote to fall from the discharge tray. In order to eliminate such a problem, it is effective to use the regulating member 611 to regulate the direction in which both ends of the short side extend.
In addition, when a wide banknote is formed into a W shape when it is discharged from the forming mechanism, both ends of the short side of the banknote may rise excessively, and may become higher than the height of the space above the dispensing tray and may interfere with the ceiling of the space (frame 660). In this case, there is a risk of banknote jamming, so the risk of jamming can be reduced by using the regulating member 611 to regulate the excessive rise during forming in advance.
In addition, with particularly stiff banknotes, both ends of the short side of the banknote may remain erect rather than drooping, and since these erect ends may block the discharge path after the banknote is stacked on the dispensing tray, it is effective to use a regulating member to regulate the direction in which both ends of the short side extend in advance.

In the example shown in Figures 5(a) and (b), the forming mechanism 550 forms upward protrusions (upwardly protruding bent portions) P1, downward protrusions (downwardly protruding bent portions) P2, and upward protrusions P3 alternately along the short side direction of the banknote so that the short side shape of the banknote B is approximately bilaterally symmetrical, and also tilts both end sides S2, S2 of the short side of the banknote upward (protrudes diagonally upward).
The upward protrusion P1 has an apex P1' and oblique sides S1, S1 extending from the apex P1' at an incline downward to the left and right (outward). The downward protrusion P2 has an apex (bottom) P2' and oblique sides S2, S2 extending from the apex P2' at an incline upward to the left and right. An upward protrusion P3, P3 is formed at the end of each oblique side S2, S2.
The apex P1' of the central protrusion P1 is formed at a position corresponding to the outer peripheral surface of the central flange 605, the apexes P2' of the left and right protrusions P2 are formed at positions corresponding to the nip portions n1 of the drive rollers 555, 600 and the tension rollers 556, 601 (final roller pair), and the apex P3' of the outer protrusion P3 is formed at a position corresponding to the outer peripheral surfaces of the outer flanges 607, 609.

That is, the central protrusion P1 is formed by pressing the central portion of the banknote upward by the central flange 605 while the left and right positions are held down by the left and right nip portions n1. The downward protrusion P2 is formed by pressing downward by the nip portion n1 between the drive roller 555 and the tension roller 556, and the nip portion n1 between the drive roller 600 and the tension roller 601. The outer oblique side S2 and protrusion P3 are formed by the outer flanges 607, 609 and the regulating member 611 while being held down by each nip portion n1.
That is, when the banknote B is passed, one upward protrusion P1 is formed at the center (widthwise center) of the short side of the banknote B, one downward protrusion P2 is formed on each of the left and right sides of the protrusion P1, and further, one upward protrusion P3, P3 is formed on each of the left and right sides of each downward protrusion P2, P2. As a result, both ends of the banknote can be corrected (formed) to a state in which they are lifted upward (inclined upward) to form the oblique sides S2, S2. The short side shape of the banknote after forming is almost symmetrical. The protrusions (P1, P2, P3) and the oblique sides S1, S2 as forming parts are formed continuously over the entire length of the banknote in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, the curling tendency (curved shape) formed along the longitudinal direction of the banknote discharged onto the dispensing tray is corrected, and the longitudinal shape of the banknote becomes almost flat or almost straight, and maintains (retains) that shape. That is, by bending (curving) the short side of the banknote B at multiple points to alternately form upward protrusions P1, downward protrusions P2, and upward protrusions P3, it is possible to eliminate the curling tendency of a banknote that is curved when viewed in the longitudinal direction, and make the shape when viewed in the longitudinal direction approximately straight (uncurled). In other words, by alternately providing upper and lower protrusions along the short side, it is possible to increase the stiffness (rigidity) over the entire longitudinal length of the banknote and impart a force (shape retention force) that holds the banknote in an approximately flat or approximately straight shape.

This allows the banknote to be oriented upward in the longitudinal direction when released from the forming mechanism 550, and the upward orientation prevents the banknote from colliding with the rear of an already-stacked banknote. In particular, if the rear end of an already-stacked banknote tends to stand upward, it is likely to collide with the front end of a succeeding banknote, but a succeeding banknote that has been strengthened to be flat and upwardly oriented increases the effect of preventing collisions with such already-stacked banknotes.
The portion of the banknote corresponding to the downward protruding portion P2 is gripped by the nip portion n1 of each final roller pair when it is discharged from the forming mechanism, and therefore does not droop during discharge. Furthermore, even after discharge, each of the protruding portions P1, P2 is formed into a mountain shape (valley shape) and maintains its shape, and strong tension is applied to each oblique side S1 connecting the protruding portions, so that each protruding portion does not droop.

Next, each oblique side S1 is formed while being stretched with sufficient tension between the outer peripheral surface of the central flange 605 and the nip portion n1 of each final roller pair. Each oblique side S2 is formed while being stretched with sufficient tension between each nip portion n1 and the outer peripheral surfaces of the outer flanges 607, 609. Therefore, each oblique side S1, S2 does not sag or hang down during and after discharge from the forming mechanism. Even in the case of a banknote with a long short side, since the protruding portion P2 is in a gripped state during discharge and is originally inclined upward, each oblique side S2 does not hang down to the extent that interference with already stacked banknotes occurs. In other words, even after discharge from the forming mechanism is completed, each protruding portion P1, P2 is in a state of being kept in a mountain shape (valley shape), and strong tension is applied to each oblique side S1 connecting the protruding portions and each oblique side S2 on the outside, so each oblique side S2 does not hang down significantly. Even if each oblique side were to sag after discharge is complete, the amount of sagging would not be very large.
Therefore, the overall height h1 after molding can be kept small, and the vertical dimensions of each part constituting the molding mechanism can be reduced.

Next, the apexes P1', P2', P3' of the individual protrusions P1, P2, P3 are not formed into an acute or obtuse angled shape, but have a shape that is a transfer of the shape of the outer circumferential surfaces of the central flange 605, the drive rollers 555, 600, and the outer flanges 607, 609, that is, are substantially flat. In short, regardless of the shape of the apex of each protrusion P1, P2, P3, if the curved shape in the longitudinal direction of the banknote can be corrected to a flat or nearly straight shape by continuously forming each protrusion over the entire longitudinal length of the banknote, then the purpose of strengthening stiffness by molding (ensuring shape retention) can be achieved.
Note that as long as each of the outermost end sides S2 is inclined upward, the number of each of the protruding portions P1, P2, and P3 may be any number. In other words, the shape does not have to be W-shaped.

In addition, in this embodiment, the height position of the central protrusion P1 of the molded banknote B is the same as the height positions of the outer protrusions P3, P3, but the height positions of the protrusions P3, P3 may be higher or lower than the protrusion P1.
When the height position of each apex P3' of each protrusion P3 is made higher than the height position of the apex P1' of the protrusion P1, the outer diameter of the outer flanges 607, 609 is made larger than the outer diameter of the central flange 605. In this case, the uppermost part T2 of the outer peripheral surface of the outer flange is higher than the uppermost part T1 of the central flange. This makes it possible to further reduce the possibility that each oblique side S2 and each apex P3' of a discharged banknote will be caught by the rear part of an already stacked banknote.
Furthermore, although the height positions of the downward protrusions P2, P2 are the same, these height positions may be different.
In addition, in the illustrated embodiment, the shape of the short sides after molding is bilaterally symmetrical, but this is merely one example, and as long as the shape can impart sufficient stiffness, it does not have to be bilaterally symmetrical.
Furthermore, if the stiffness of the bill after molding (particularly the stiffness in the direction of the short sides) is at a normal level, the oblique sides S1, S2 located between the respective protrusions of the bill will be stretched in an almost linear manner with sufficient tension as shown in FIG. 5(b).
Another advantage of forming the banknotes into a W-shape, i.e., a shape with both oblique sides S1 and S2 inclined upward, is that sufficient stiffness can be ensured while keeping the total height h1 after forming to a minimum. In experiments, the total height h1 could be kept to about 2.5 mm, so the diameters of the rollers and flanges that make up the forming mechanism can be made compact, and the bulk of the formed banknotes does not become extremely large.

However, as will be described later, if the stiffness of the banknote is significantly reduced, the tension of the oblique sides S1 and S2 between the protrusions is reduced and the banknote is likely to become loose, resulting in a decrease in shape retention during and after discharge from the forming mechanism.
In addition, when the short side of the banknote B is formed into an M-shape as shown in FIG. 5(c), both ends S3 of the short side are inclined downward, so that the banknote is likely to droop. Therefore, when the banknote is discharged onto the dispensing tray, both ends S3 may get caught by banknotes previously stacked on the dispensing tray (particularly banknotes whose rear ends tend to protrude upward), causing them to fall. When the banknote is formed into an M-shape, the outer end S3 is likely to hang down significantly beyond the height position of the downward protruding part P4, which causes the banknote to get caught on the already stacked banknotes. In particular, in the case of a banknote with a long short side, the outer end S3 becomes longer than that shown in the figure, so the drooping state becomes worse.
For this reason, a molding shape in which both ends of the short sides are inclined downward or drooping cannot be adopted.

Meanwhile, banknotes issued in various countries around the world are broadly divided into narrow banknotes, such as those in the United States, Canada, Australia, etc., whose maximum size (maximum width) of the short side is less than 72 mm, and wide banknotes, such as those in Japan, the Euro, Macau, etc., whose maximum width is 72 mm or more and less than 86 mm.
On the other hand, when a manufacturer of banknote processing devices manufactures banknote processing devices for a country where narrow banknotes are circulated and another country where wide banknotes are circulated, it is disadvantageous to manufacture devices with different specifications for each country. In other words, preparing two models of banknote processing devices that have no structural difference other than the difference in the width of the transport path, and manufacturing and shipping them according to orders is clearly disadvantageous in terms of increased manufacturing costs and inventory management costs.
In order to deal with such disadvantages and inconveniences, a countermeasure has been adopted in which only one machine equipped with a wide transport path capable of transporting wide bills is prepared and used for both wide and narrow bills.
In particular, when the second unit M2 is incorporated into the banknote processing device 1, the forming mechanism 550 is required to be configured to form the banknote into a shape that can provide sufficient stiffness regardless of the short side dimension of the banknote.

However, in a recycle unit equipped with a recycle drum, because the banknotes are stored wrapped around the outer periphery of the recycle drum, the banknotes tend to be curved in the longitudinal direction (curl tendency). In particular, if the banknotes conveyed from the recycle unit and discharged onto the dispensing tray 700 have an upward curl tendency with the longitudinal center bulging upward, the leading end (inclined downward) of the newly discharged banknote hits the rear of the already-stacked banknote, causing the already-stacked banknote to fall from the dispensing tray. Even if there are no already-stacked banknotes, a newly discharged banknote with an upward curl tendency will either slide over the dispensing tray and fall beyond its leading edge because its leading end is curved downward, or bend between the banknote presser lever and the top surface of the dispensing tray.

In the present invention, the forming mechanism 550 is used to form the short side of the bill into a predetermined shape (a shape having stiffness) over the entire length, thereby solving such conventional problems.
In the forming mechanism 550 of this embodiment, the distance L1 between the drive rollers 555, 600 and the central flange 605, and the distance L2 between the flanges 607, 609 and the drive rollers 555, 600 are set to L1 = 8 mm to 9 mm and L2 = 10 mm to 11 mm, respectively, so as to be able to handle narrow banknotes whose maximum width is less than 72 mm. In other words, when forming the short side shape into a W shape as in this embodiment, the positional relationship between the drive rollers and the flanges is set so that both ends S2 in the short direction of the narrow banknote are inclined upward.

On the other hand, if the positional relationship of each drive roller 555, 600 centered on the central flange 605, and the positional relationship of each flange 607, 609 centered on the central flange are set in this manner to suit narrow banknotes, it becomes possible to crease wide banknotes, whose maximum width is 72 mm or more and less than 86 mm, in the short side direction in the same way as for narrow banknotes.
In addition, the short-side position of each of the protrusions P1, P2, P3 is constant regardless of the size of the short side of the banknote B, but the length l1 of the top P3' of the outermost protrusion P3 varies depending on the size of the short side of the banknote B.

However, by determining at least the axial positions of the flanges 607, 609 on both sides, i.e., the distance between the flanges 607, 609, so as to accommodate a minimum banknote width of less than 72 mm, it becomes possible to appropriately form wide banknotes while keeping the layout of each drive roller and each flange constant.
In other words, both narrow and wide banknotes are transported along the discharge transport path 510 so that the centre of their short sides roughly coincides with the widthwise centre of the central flange 605, so the locations (distance from the centre of the short sides) where the upward protrusions P1, P3 and the downward protrusion P2 are formed are the same, and only the length l1 of the portion extending outwards beyond each protrusion P3 differs.
For banknotes with a short side length of less than 72 mm, the length l1 of the top P3' of the outermost protrusion P3 is short, but if the short side exceeds 85 mm, the length l1 of the top P3 becomes long. However, since each top P3' is gripped by the outer flanges 607, 609 during discharge from the forming mechanism, it is prevented from sagging significantly. Furthermore, if the banknote has normal stiffness even after discharge, it is similarly prevented from sagging.

On the other hand, because the layout places all the drive rollers and flanges inside the 72 mm short side dimension of narrow bills, when the short side of a wide bill is deformed into an M shape, both ends protrude significantly downward. This makes it easier for the tips of bills already stacked on the dispensing tray to collide with the tips of subsequent bills being discharged. As a result, previously stacked bills are pushed out and fall off the dispensing tray, and subsequent bills are crushed and deformed, resulting in stacking problems.

<Impeller>
Furthermore, the discharge/transport/accumulation section 500 is provided with an impeller 650. That is, the impeller 650 is fixed at the axial core by a rotating shaft 552 at the axially outer side of each driving roller 555, 600 and at the inner side of each flange 607, 609. The impeller 650 is configured with blades 654 of the same length fixed at a predetermined interval in the circumferential direction on the outer periphery of a small diameter base part 652 and protruding radially. In this example, three blades 654 are arranged at intervals of 120 degrees. The blades 654 are narrow belt-like, made of a material that is easily elastically deformed such as a rubber plate, and have a shape that is curved at least in the overall direction of rotation. Alternatively, it may be configured to be curved by centrifugal force when the impeller rotates.

Since the impeller 650 is disposed on the same axis as the drive rollers 555, 600, depending on the setting of the circumferential interval between the blades 654 and the rotational speed of the impeller, there is a risk that the blades may interfere with the banknotes being discharged from the nip between the drive roller and the tension roller (final roller pair), hindering discharge. To eliminate such a risk, the discharge speed of the banknotes and the rotational speed of the blades are set so that discharge of each banknote begins and ends one by one during the 120-degree circumferential interval between one blade and the next.
While the banknote is passing through the final pair of rollers, none of the blades interfere with the banknote, but as will be described later, after the trailing end of the banknote has passed the final pair of rollers, the blade rotating from above will interfere with and come into contact with the banknote, scraping it downward and backward.

The impeller blade 654 according to this embodiment is a flat, thin, band-shaped body made of an elastic material such as rubber, and its tip surface (contact surface with the banknote) is provided with a high-friction region 656 in which small convex portions 656a and concave portions 656b are alternately provided. The convex portions 656a constituting the high-friction region 656 are made of a material with a higher friction coefficient than the material of the blade base body. If the surface in contact with the banknote is flat as a whole, the friction resistance decreases due to the adhesion of paper powder and dust, but the presence of the high-friction region 656 made of concave and convex portions can prevent slippage between the banknote and the blade. In particular, the paper powder is prevented from entering the recess, and the high-friction region itself is elastically deformed and expands and contracts due to contact with the guide member, so that the paper powder in the recess is easily discharged, and an automatic cleaning function can be exhibited. In addition, the provision of the high-friction region 656 can improve the durability of the tip portion of the blade, which is easily worn out due to friction with the banknote.
In the present embodiment, the high-friction region 656 is a rectangular prism in which the convex portion 656a is elongated and extends in the width direction of the blade, and the concave portion 656b is a groove located between two convex portions 656a. However, this is merely one example, and any high-friction region having a configuration in which convex portions and concave portions are arranged alternately may be used.

<Banknote holding lever>
Furthermore, the discharge, transport and stacking section 500 is provided with a banknote press lever (hereinafter referred to as the lever) 670 for decelerating and pressing down the banknotes forcefully discharged from the forming mechanism, and stopping (landing) them at an appropriate position on the surface of the dispensing tray 700. The lever 670 is pivotally supported by a lever shaft 672 at its rear end (rear portion) so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction, so that a portion forward of the rear end, particularly a portion protruding above the dispensing tray, can be rotated in the vertical direction. The lever 670 is always lowered by its own weight onto the upper surface of the dispensing tray 700 (or already-stacked banknotes) when the forming mechanism 550 is not discharging banknotes, and is pushed up by the banknotes B when banknotes with sufficient stiffness pass through the forming mechanism 550, allowing them to pass.
That is, a lever shaft 672 is provided on a frame 660 located above the rotation shaft 552, and the rear part of the lever 670 is supported by the lever shaft 672 so that it can rotate freely in the vertical direction. The lever 670 moves in an arc as it descends under its own weight onto the dispensing tray (onto the already accumulated banknotes), and is pushed up by the banknotes as they are discharged.

The lever shaft 672 is located behind the rotation shaft 552 (upstream side in the direction of conveyance of the banknotes by the discharge conveyance path) and above. The vertical rotation trajectory of the lever 670 centered on the lever shaft is in an axial positional relationship that interferes with the central flange 605. That is, the width dimension of the lever has a value that interferes with the central flange 605, but an open portion (interference avoidance portion) 673 is formed in the widthwise center of the tip edge of the lever to avoid interference with the flange 605. That is, the tip edge of the lever 670 is a bifurcated branch end 670a, and an open portion 673 into which the central flange fits is formed between the branch ends. Each branch portion 670a is made of a narrow belt-shaped plate material and extends in parallel with the open portion 673 sandwiched therebetween. Due to the presence of the open portion 673, the lever can rotate downward beyond the central flange while avoiding the central flange 605 and move to the upper surface side of the dispensing tray 700.
The role of lever 670 is to continuously contact (slide) with the top surface of banknote B transported along discharge transport path 510 as it is discharged from forming mechanism 550, thereby applying downward pressure to the banknote through the lever's own weight, causing it to land stably on the dispensing tray 700, and to press down on banknotes accumulated on the dispensing tray to prevent them from floating up.

Therefore, the lever in the lowered position must be pushed up quickly and responsively by bills with sufficient stiffness passing through the forming mechanism to allow the bills to pass. On the other hand, since the lever must hold down already-stacked bills, weight is added by fixing a weight member 675 to an appropriate position in front of the lever as necessary.
In other words, if the lever is not pushed up sufficiently by the banknotes being discharged, the banknotes will not be able to reach the correct stopping position on the dispensing tray and will stop in a bent state at the rear of the dispensing tray, or will collide with the rear of already stacked banknotes and push them out. For this reason, the lever needs to be lightweight so that it can be pushed up to a sufficient height by the banknotes, but it also needs to be heavy enough to apply pressure to the top faces of the already stacked banknotes when it descends to prevent them from floating up.

As will be described later with reference to FIG. 11 etc., the leading end of the banknote B conveyed through the discharge conveying path 510 can come into contact with the lower surface of the lever at a position between the lever shaft 672 and the rotating shaft 552 and start to push up. In the discharge conveying path 510, the banknote is deformed into a flat posture and temporarily given strong stiffness by the pinching pressure from the conveying guides 510a arranged vertically at a narrow interval and the nipping force of the conveying roller pair 517. Therefore, even if a banknote that has a tendency to curl or has weak stiffness presses the lever upstream of the rotating shaft 552, it can start to push up the lever without being crushed or buckled. Furthermore, since the leading end of the banknote that has passed through the forming mechanism 550 is formed into a W-shape and given strong stiffness, it can move forward with even greater force while pushing up the lever quickly and land and stop at an optimal position on the dispensing tray.
In addition, the reason why the weight of the lever is generally added by the weight 675 is considered to be to be able to handle bills with different weights, materials, strengths, etc., when the bill processing device 1 is designed to be commonly applicable to different bills from all over the world. That is, the lever has a function of promoting discharge (forward movement) by pushing forward the bill discharged from the forming mechanism, and a function of holding down the discharged bill and controlling the landing position. It has been thought that if the weight of the lever is constant despite the fact that the conditions such as the weight of the bill are greatly different, the lever may become too light or too heavy for the bill, and the lever may not be able to function properly, so that weight adjustment by the weight is necessary. However, in an experiment using the bill discharge/accumulation device M2, it was confirmed that it is possible to handle bills from all over the world by simply attaching a 10 gram weight to the lever. That is, in this embodiment, it is sufficient to attach a weight of a constant weight to the lever, and it is not necessary to adjust the weight according to conditions such as the type of bill.
However, it has been confirmed that adjusting the weight of the weight is effective in normalizing the operation of the lever for weak bills, regardless of the type of bill.

<Payment tray>
The dispensing tray (discharge tray) 700 is a means for receiving and stacking banknotes discharged (released) from the forming mechanism 550, and as shown in the oblique view of FIG. 2 and the vertical cross-sectional view of FIG. 8, generally comprises a substantially horizontal and flat base surface (first upper surface) 701, inclined protrusions 703 each protruding forward from both widthwise ends near the tip of the base surface and having an upwardly inclined surface (second upper surface) 703a on its upper surface, a retractable member (inclined surface forming member) 705 whose rear end is journalled within elongated grooves (holes) 704 provided on the inner edge of each inclined protrusion, thereby allowing the front part to rotate in the vertical direction, and an elastic member 707 that biases the retractable member to the protruding position shown in FIGS. 2 and 8. Each of the retractable members 705 is constantly biased to a protruding position by an elastic member, and the upper surface 705a is an inclined surface inclined upward more than the inclined surface 703a of the inclined protrusion 703, so that the banknotes attempting to move forward along the inclined protrusion 703 can be braked to slow down and stop, preventing them from falling. A friction sheet is attached to the upper surface 705a of the retractable member to increase frictional resistance between the banknotes and the upper surface 705a. If a friction sheet is not provided, there is a risk that the momentum of the released banknotes will cause them to slide on the resin upper surface 705a and fly out of the dispensing tray, but the upper surface 705a as an inclined surface equipped with a friction sheet can effectively slow down the banknotes.
In addition, for the second and subsequent bills, a sufficient frictional resistance can be ensured between the bills and the already stacked bills, so that the deceleration effect can be further enhanced.

After the specified number of banknotes have been discharged and stacked on the dispensing tray, when the user wishes to remove the stacked banknote bundle all at once, the user can press down on the retractable member 705 with their fingers to retract the upper surface 705a into the groove 704a, making it easy to remove the banknote bundle without the retractable member getting in the way of the operation. Also, if a banknote jams at the back of the dispensing tray, such as when it is crushed, it is possible to insert one's fingers all the way in by pressing down on the retractable member, making it possible to remove the jammed banknotes.

<Guide member (guide protrusion)>
As shown in each figure, a guide member (guide protrusion) 710 as a protrusion is disposed on the base surface 701 of the dispensing tray 700 at a position corresponding to (interfering with) the movement trajectory of the blades 654 of each impeller 650. The guide member works in cooperation with the impeller as described below to capture the discharged banknote B before it moves forward and lands completely on the dispensing tray, and then moves it backward toward the space 702, thereby eliminating a stacking (discharge) failure state in which the leading edge of the banknote excessively protrudes from the leading edge of the dispensing tray.
If the length of the discharging direction of the dispensing tray is shortened, it is conceivable that the position at which the banknotes discharged from the forming mechanism 550 land on the dispensing tray may be biased too far forward, causing them to fall off the dispensing tray. However, the guide member is a means for engaging the discharged banknotes and for preventing them from protruding excessively forward by moving them backward in cooperation with the blades, thereby eliminating such a problem.

2 to 5 and 7, each guide member 710 is disposed on the upper surface of the dispensing tray so as to interfere with the movement trajectory of each blade, and contacts (interferes with) the descending blade, allowing it to rotate (pass) while elastically deforming it. Each guide member 710 includes a first contact portion (upper surface 716, rear edge 716a) that contacts the rear portion of the banknote discharged onto the dispensing tray by the forming mechanism 550 at a position higher than the upper surface of the dispensing tray (prior to the upper surface of the dispensing tray), and a curved guide surface 720 that curves downward and extends from the first contact portion to the rear (upstream) in the paper discharge direction.
The position and width of each guide member are set so as to come into contact with (or be in the vicinity of) both widthwise ends of the rear portion of the banknote as shown in FIG. 5 and other figures.
In this embodiment, the rear of the bill broadly includes the rear half of the bill that the blades can contact as they rotate.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7 and the like, the guide member 710 generally includes a front protrusion 715 having a square flat upper surface 716, a curved guide surface (guide surface, curved recess) 720 that extends downwardly in a concave manner from a rear end edge (corner edge portion) 716a of the upper surface, and a rear guide surface 722 that extends approximately horizontally from the rear end edge of the curved guide surface. The rear end edge 716a is a corner portion that extends linearly parallel to the axial direction of the rotation shaft 552. The curved guide surface 720 extends downward and backward in a curved manner with the same width as the rear end edge 716a. The rear guide surface 722 extends backward with the same width as the curved guide surface 720. In this example, the rear guide surface 722 is located slightly higher than the first upper surface 701 of the dispensing tray, but this is merely an example, and it may be at the same height as long as it does not hinder the effect of scraping together by cooperation with the blades.
Since the top surface 716 and the rear edge 716a of the top surface are located at positions where the tips of the blades that rotate and move come into contact with them, the tips of the blades pass while elastically deforming and coming into contact with a part of the top surface 716 and the rear edge 716a. In order to enable cooperation with the blades to scrape the banknotes backward, the shapes and positional relationship of the curved guide surface 720 and the rear guide surface 722 are also selected so that the tips of the blades move while elastically deforming and coming into contact with them.

In an experiment, instead of the curved guide surface 720, a guide member having a continuous flat surface sloping diagonally downward and backward from the rear edge 716a was placed on the dispensing tray.Although this was able to scrape banknotes backward in cooperation with the tips of the blades, the scraping efficiency was not as high as that of the curved guide surface.
5(a), the width of each guide member is more than twice the width of the blade, and is configured to extend axially outward beyond each outer flange 607, 609 so as to be able to contact both widthwise ends of banknotes B. This makes it possible to contact and guide both widthwise ends of wide banknotes.

<Change payment procedure>
FIG. 9 is a flow chart for explaining an outline of a change dispensing operation procedure by the banknote processing device 1 of the present invention.
When the acceptance of the deposited money and the payment of the change have been confirmed, the payment of the change is performed in the following procedure.

First, the control means 1000 instructs each of the recycling units 30 and 40 to dispense a predetermined number of bills of the denomination stored therein (step S1). For example, the control means 1000 instructs the recycling unit 30 to dispense three 1,000 yen bills stored therein and the recycling unit 40 to dispense one 5,000 yen bill stored therein onto the dispensing tray as change.
Then, each of the recycling units 30 and 40 starts dispensing the designated number of 1,000 yen bills and 5,000 yen bills, respectively (step S3). For example, after dispensing three consecutive 1,000 yen bills from the recycling unit 30, the recycling unit 40 dispenses one 5,000 yen bill.
The denomination of the banknotes dispensed one by one from each of the recycling units 30, 40 is checked by the recognition unit 70 provided on the stored banknote transport path 9b, and if the denomination is as specified, the banknotes are sent sequentially to the discharge, transport, and stacking unit 500, and discharge and transport of each banknote is started (S5, S7 Yes, S9).
If it is determined in step S7 that the item cannot be returned, it is temporarily stored in the escrow section and then transported to the collection warehouse 50 (step S21).
In step S11, when the paper passing sensor 580 detects that the banknotes B sent one by one to the discharge, transporting and stacking section 500 have passed through the forming mechanism 550 (step S11 Yes), the presence or absence of subsequent banknotes is determined in step S13, and if there are subsequent banknotes, the subsequent banknotes are continuously discharged by the discharge, transporting mechanism 520 (step S15).
Furthermore, in step S17, it is checked whether or not all the succeeding bills have passed through the forming mechanism, and if they have, the process ends.

Comparison with conventional banknote processing devices
Next, in order to clarify the advantages of the present invention by comparison with the prior art, a comparative explanation will be given using a side vertical sectional view of a prior art discharge, transport and stacking section 500P shown in FIG.
The conventional discharge/transport stacking unit 500P includes a discharge/transport path 510P, a discharge/transport mechanism 520P, a lever 670P, a payment tray 700P, and a discharge mechanism (drive roller 600P, tension roller 601P) for discharging the banknotes onto the payment tray. The discharge mechanism does not have a function of correcting the curling tendency by deforming the short side shape of the banknotes in a predetermined manner. In addition, the lever shaft 672P of the conventional lever 670P is located closer to the payment tray (forward) than the shaft 552P of the drive roller, and the overall length of the lever is inevitably shorter than that of the lever of the present invention. For this reason, the banknote B conveyed along the discharge/transport path 510P comes into contact with the lever 670P and starts to push it up after its tip passes through the discharge mechanism and comes into contact with the lever. Since this discharge mechanism does not have the function of deforming the short side shape of the banknote to reinforce its stiffness, if the banknote is weak or if the leading edge of the banknote has a tendency to curl downward, the banknote may not be able to push up the lever sufficiently, causing the banknote to buckle and jam. In other words, if the banknote does not push up the lever sufficiently, the banknote may not be able to advance sufficiently on the dispensing tray, and may stop in a buckled state at a position much further back than the normal stopping position on the dispensing tray (to the right in the drawing). Therefore, it was difficult to stack multiple banknotes that were sequentially discharged onto the dispensing tray in a state that was easy to take out and well-aligned.

In addition, in the conventional discharge/transport/accumulation unit 500P, the bill discharged from the discharge mechanism comes into contact with the underside of the lever 670P in front of the rotation shaft 552P and at the closest position to the lever shaft (contact point C) (see FIG. 10). As a result, the distance L3' between the lever shaft 672P and the contact point C between the lever and the bill's tip becomes shorter, so a large force is required for the bill to lift the lever. For this reason, bills with weak stiffness are unable to push up the lever sufficiently and are prone to buckling at a position behind the normal stopping position. In particular, when the tip of the bill reaches contact point C, it is released from the restraints of the transport roller 517P, drive roller 552P, and tension roller 601P and has returned to a weak state, so the tip of the bill is prone to buckling downward as shown in FIG. 10. After that, the rear parts of the same bill that are discharged after being released from the restraints of each roller are also prone to buckling in succession.

Furthermore, since the initial angle θ' of the conventional lever 670P during descent is small, a larger force is required for the bills discharged from the discharge mechanism to push up the lever. Therefore, weak bills cannot push up the lever sufficiently and are prone to buckling after being discharged. Or, they are prone to collide with the rear of the already stacked bills, pushing them out of the dispensing tray and causing them to fall.
In contrast, in this embodiment, the lever shaft 672 is positioned rearward of the rotation shaft 552, and the lever 670 is made longer. The length of the lever 670 is set so that the tip of the lever can descend and contact an appropriate position on the upper surface of the dispensing tray (in this example, the base surface 701) when there are no banknotes on the dispensing tray. This is because if there is a gap between the lever tip and the upper surface 701 of the dispensing tray, there is a risk that banknotes will fall out of the gap and fly out of the dispensing tray.

Also, in this embodiment, the distance L3 (see FIG. 11(a)) between the lever and the contact point C between the banknote and the lever shaft can be made sufficiently long. This reduces the force required for the banknote to lift the lever, making it easier to push up the lever. Also, because the contact point C is located within the discharge transport path 510 (before the forming mechanism), the leading edge of the banknote when it reaches the contact point C is flattened by the transport guide 510a and the pair of transport rollers 517, temporarily strengthening its stiffness, and the lever can be effectively pushed up.
In addition, by configuring the elongated lever 670 so that its tip comes into contact with the upper surface 701 of the dispensing tray when it descends, the initial angle θ' when the lever descends as shown in Fig. 11(a) can be increased, making it easier to push up the bills when they are inserted. Therefore, it becomes possible to efficiently push up the lever even with weak bills.

In this embodiment, the following three points have been devised to eliminate the problem that banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray are unable to push up the lever sufficiently and are caused to drop due to the weight of the lever (a tendency for the banknotes to curl upwards in the longitudinal direction).
That is, (1) the shaping mechanism 550 shapes the short side of the bill into a predetermined shape (e.g., a W-shape) that can strengthen the stiffness along the length of the bill, (2) the weight of the lever is adjusted to an optimum value using the weight member 675, and (3) the width W1 of the central flange 605 is set sufficiently wide to maintain the lever lifting effect caused by the bill.

First, regarding (1), in the period until the rear end of the banknote has passed through the forming mechanism 550 (the nip portion n1 between the drive roller and tension roller, and the flange), it is preferable to keep the banknote horizontal or in an upward position without lowering it in order to form the banknote into a W-shape over its entire length, and the forming mechanism can fully fulfill this role. In other words, the banknotes discharged from the forming mechanism onto the dispensing tray 700 are reliably discharged while pushing up the lever 670 because they have been strengthened. In other words, while the banknotes are passing through the forming mechanism, they are gripped by the flanges and the final pair of rollers, so the portion of the banknote that protrudes forward from the forming mechanism can continue to maintain its curl-corrected state (strength of stiffness). In addition, even when the banknotes have passed through the forming mechanism, they fall to the correct position while maintaining their curl-corrected state, and are finally pressed down by the lever together with the banknotes already stacked.

Next, with regard to (2), consideration has been given to the premise that the banknote discharge/stacking device M2 is a general-purpose model that can handle banknotes from all over the world. In other words, banknotes from each country differ in material, thickness, stiffness, weight, dimensions, etc., and in order to improve stacking while accommodating these differences, it is necessary to adjust the weight of the lever. In other words, if the lever is too light for the weight of the banknotes, it will be less effective in holding down the banknotes already stacked on the dispensing tray when it descends, while if the lever is too heavy, there is a risk that it will excessively press down on the banknotes being discharged, so fine adjustment of the weight of the lever using the weight member 675 is necessary.

Next, regarding (3), the width W1 (FIG. 3) of the central flange is set to be sufficiently large to prevent the corresponding portion of the bill from falling into the gap G2 between the opening 673 formed between the branch ends 670a of the lever and the central flange 605. If the bill falls into this gap G2, the effect of pushing up the lever is reduced, and there is a risk of the bill being crushed on the dispensing tray. This point will be described later.
In conventional device configurations, no consideration is given to this at all.

<Processing procedure for dispensing banknotes by the discharge, transport and stacking unit>
Next, a procedure for processing the dispensed banknotes by the discharging, transporting and stacking unit 500 (the forming mechanism, the impeller, the banknote pressing lever and the guide member) will be described with reference to Figs.
A base portion 562, which is the center of the impeller 650, is integrated with the rotating shaft 552, and rotates integrally with the drive rollers 555, 600 and the flanges 605, 607, 609. Conventional impellers are used to prevent discharged banknotes B from flying forward from the dispensing tray by knocking them down with the blades. In contrast, the impeller of this embodiment exerts a function of moving the banknotes backward as they are discharged one by one in cooperation with a guide member 710 provided on the dispensing tray as they fall, in addition to the conventional function.

Figures 11 (a) to (d) are explanatory diagrams (side vertical cross-sectional views) of the operation of the discharge, transport, and stacking section 500, sequentially showing the states from when the tip of a banknote B transported in the discharge direction within the discharge transport path 510 comes into contact with the lever and pushes up the lever, to just after the tip of the banknote passes through the forming mechanism 550.
Figures 12(e) and (f) are explanatory diagrams (side vertical cross-sectional views) of the operation of the discharge, transporting and stacking section 500, showing the state just before and just after the rear end of banknote B passes through the forming mechanism, and Figures 12(g), (h), Figures 13(i) to (l), and Figures 14(m) to (O) are diagrams for explaining the process by which banknotes fall onto the dispensing tray and the operational procedure by which the blades move the banknotes backwards.
The shape of the dispensed banknote B shown in each figure only shows the shape of the end surface of the banknote cut at the center of the short side. In other words, the state and movement trajectory of the cut end surface of the banknote corresponding to the center of the short side (protruding part P1) corresponding to the center flange 605 are shown. Therefore, the state and movement trajectory of each drive roller 555, 600 and the short side parts (protruding parts P2, P3) corresponding to the outer flanges 607, 609, and each oblique side S1, S2 are not shown.

Before entering the forming mechanism 550, the dispensed banknotes are flattened by being pressed from above and below by the conveying rollers (conveying members) 517 and the like in the discharge conveying path, but after passing through the forming mechanism, the short side shape is formed (formed) into a W shape along the longitudinal direction as shown in Fig. 6. For this reason, the shape of the banknotes located downstream from the forming mechanism is actually three-dimensional in a W shape, but as described above, Figs. 11 to 14 show cross-sectional views in which the center of the short side of the banknote is cut over its entire length, and therefore do not show the difference in shape (top and bottom thickness) of the banknote before and after passing through the forming mechanism.
In addition, the lever 670 is configured so that the lever shaft 672 is located rearward of the rotation shaft 552, yet the tip of the lever can be moved up and down without interfering with the central flange 605, making the following behavior possible.

11(a), banknote B discharged from one of the return units and transported upward along stored banknote transport path 9b is guided to discharge transport path 510 by the cooperation of flapper 514, which is in the switching position shown in the figure, as roller 512a is driven to rotate counterclockwise. In the same figure (a), the leading edge of the banknote comes into contact with the underside of lever 670 and begins to press it just before forming mechanism 550, that is, just before nip portion n1 between each driving roller 555, 600 and each driven roller 556, 601. That is, when the banknote has not yet reached the forming mechanism, lever 670 descends under its own weight as shown in (a) and its leading edge is in contact with the upper surface of dispensing tray 700, but the banknote presses against a portion (contact point C) spaced a distance L3 from lever shaft 672, pushing the lever up as shown in (b). Because the lever shaft 672 is located behind the rotating shaft 552, the leading edge of the bill can come into contact with the lever at the position shown in FIG. 11(a) (upstream position from the rotating shaft) and begin to be pushed up. Moreover, because a sufficiently long distance L3 is secured between the lever shaft and the contact point C, and the initial angle θ of the lever is set large, close to 180 degrees, the lever can be pushed up with a light force.

11(c), the banknote B has moved a little further in the discharge direction than in (b), so the lever is pushed up further by the banknote, but has not yet reached the bottom surface of the upper frame 660. At this stage, the leading edge of the banknote has not completely passed through the forming mechanism.
When a banknote passes through the forming mechanism, the center of its short side moves along the upper part of the central flange 605, the short side parts corresponding to each of the drive rollers 555, 660 pass through the nip part n1 with the tension rollers 556, 601, and the short side parts corresponding to each of the outer flanges 607, 609 move along the upper part of each of the outer flanges. The timing at which each part of the short side moves through each corresponding part is almost the same. Note that when a banknote has completely passed through the forming mechanism, it means that each part of the short side of the banknote has left the central flange 605, the nip part n1 between the drive roller and the tension roller (final roller pair), and each of the outer flanges.

In the next stage (d), the banknote is still being held (grip) by the flanges and final roller pair that make up the forming mechanism, while the leading edge of the banknote has passed through the forming mechanism and progressed a little, and the short side of the part that has completed passage has been formed into a W-shape. As a result, the leading edge of the banknote located downstream of the forming mechanism is in a state of being given strong stiffness, and the lever is pushed up to a position where it comes into contact with the frame 660 by the leading edge of the banknote, which has strong stiffness, and stops rising. At this time, the banknote portion located downstream of the forming mechanism is not pushed down by the lever, so the position of that banknote portion is not tilted downward or curved, but maintains a horizontal position or an upward tilted position.

In Figure 12(e), the entire front part of the bill, excluding the rear part that is clamped by the nip portion n1 between each drive roller and each driven roller, has been given strong stiffness by the forming mechanism, so the lever continues to be pushed up to the highest position while maintaining a roughly straight posture as shown in the figure. In other words, the bill is discharged along the underside of the lever at the highest position, but at this stage the leading edge of the bill has not yet descended onto the dispensing tray.

FIG. 2(f) shows the state where the trailing end of the banknote B has completely exited the forming mechanism 550.
Even if a banknote originally has a tendency to curl with its leading edge tilted downward, the curling tendency is eliminated by the time it is discharged from the forming mechanism toward the dispensing tray. Therefore, the banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray do not push out the already stacked banknotes and cause them to fall out of the dispensing tray. In other words, in the process from (e) to (f), the leading edge of the succeeding banknote does not come into contact with the rear part or other part of the already stacked banknote and push it out of the dispensing tray.

Furthermore, the curling tendency of already stacked banknotes has been removed by the shaping mechanism, and the banknotes maintain a straight and flat posture over their entire length, eliminating unnecessary interference with subsequent banknotes.
In the subsequent stages (g) and (h), the leading edge of the banknote protrudes from the leading edge of the dispensing tray, and if this state is left as it is, there is a possibility that the banknote will fall off the dispensing tray. If there is a request to shorten the length of the second unit M2 in the front-rear direction, the length of the dispensing tray in the front-rear direction will be shortened, and this phenomenon is likely to occur. In this case, when the banknote is formed and discharged by the forming mechanism and lands on the dispensing tray while being held down by the lever, its leading edge protrudes significantly from the front edge of the shortened dispensing tray and is likely to fall.
In order to solve this problem, the present invention is configured so that when a banknote lands in a state where it protrudes significantly from the leading edge of the dispensing tray (in this example, the retractable member 705) as shown in (g) and (h), a retreat space 702 is formed at the rear of the dispensing tray 700. A guide member 710 as a protrusion is fixedly disposed on the upper surface of the dispensing tray corresponding to this retreat space 702, at a position corresponding to the movement trajectory of the blades 654 of each impeller. The guide member and the impeller work together to retreat the banknote B once discharged onto the dispensing tray toward the space 702, thereby eliminating the state where the leading edge protrudes from the leading edge of the dispensing tray.
The arrangement and height of the guide member 710 are configured so that the blades start to collect the bills when the rear portions of the bills that have fallen onto the dispensing tray are in the air before they fall onto the upper surface 716 or the rear edge 716a of the guide member as shown in (g) and (h). In other words, the first contact between the falling bills and the blades is made when the bills are in the air.
Furthermore, due to variations in the behavior of banknotes, the tips of the wings may come into contact with the rear of the banknote after it has fallen onto the upper surface of the guide member, or as soon as it falls; however, it has been confirmed that even in such cases the banknote can still be scraped backwards without any problems.
The length and positional relationship of each vane 654 are set so that the vanes 654 always come into sliding contact with the outer surface of the guide member 710 during the rotational movement.

12(g), (h), 13(i), and (j), the rotation speed of the impeller, the rotation timing of the impeller with respect to the discharged banknotes, and the length of the impeller (the rotation trajectory of the impeller tips) are selected so that the rear of the banknote discharged onto the dispensing tray can be captured by the impeller 654c rotating from above and pulled down towards the guide member 710. The front-to-rear position of the guide member on the dispensing tray, the front-to-rear length of the upper surface 716, and the front-to-rear position of the rear edge 716a are selected so that the rear lower surface of the banknote pulled down by the impeller 654c can easily come into contact with the upper surface and rear edge of the guide member, as shown in the above figures.
With this configuration, even if the discharged bill is about to fly out too far forward, the blades 654c can capture the rear end of the bill in the air at an early stage after the bill is discharged and start to sweep it downward and backward. Furthermore, when the blades 654c reach the rear edge 716a of the guide member, they start to pinch the underside of the rear part of the bill between themselves and the rear edge, and thereafter, the entire bill can be pushed backward while being pinched between the tips of the blades and the curved guide surface 720 (FIGS. 13(k)(l), 14(m) to (O)).
In addition, in stages (g) and after, the banknote whose rear end has been detached from the forming mechanism 550 is pushed down by the lever 670 and moves downward, so that the banknote is pushed backward as it moves downward due to the cooperation of the lever and the blade.

To explain this in more detail, in the present invention, in order to increase the processing speed of the dispensed banknotes, the tip of the blade 654c is configured to contact the rear of the banknote discharged from the forming mechanism 550 before the banknote has completely fallen onto the upper surface of the dispensing tray or onto the guide member 710, when the rear of the banknote is in the air (FIGS. 12(g) and (h)). By appropriately selecting and setting the timing of contact between each blade and each banknote, in other words, the rotation speed of each blade and the discharge speed of each banknote, it is possible to start the operation of forcibly pulling the banknote downward and backward at the time when the blade contacts the rear of the banknote in the air. After that, when the blade descends to a position where it contacts the upper surface and the rear edge of the guide member, the rear of the banknote is sandwiched between the blade and the guide member, so that the subsequent rotation of the blade reliably draws it backward along the curved guide surface 720. Therefore, all the bills are stacked on the dispensing tray with their trailing ends aligned, regardless of differences in longitudinal size, and will not fall off the leading edge of the dispensing tray.
12(g) to 14(O), the leading edge of the bill discharged onto the dispensing tray lands on the dispensing tray (on the retractable member 705) and is then pulled backward. When this phenomenon is viewed from the return port side, the bill is discharged in a state where it protrudes from the front edge of the dispensing tray, but immediately thereafter it is pulled backward and stops.
The falling path and falling timing of the bills whose stiffness has been strengthened by the forming mechanism 550 are relatively stable and constant, but in the case of bills that have an extremely strong tendency to curl upward or bills that are so-called wrinkled bills whose original stiffness has been significantly reduced, the falling path and falling timing may vary even after being formed by the forming mechanism. For this reason, the blades are not always able to capture the rear part of the bill at the same timing in the air. The rear part of the bill may fall onto the guide member before the blades come into contact. However, according to this embodiment, even in such a case, the blades can pinch the rear part of the bill between the blades and the guide member and scrape it backward.

To explain this in more detail, the impeller is configured and rotated at a timing such that the impeller knocks the discharged bills downward. In particular, in this embodiment, the bills discharged after being shaped into a W-shape by the shaping mechanism 550 can be designed to contact the blades in the air as they fall, as long as the bills have a normal curl before being shaped. However, if the bills have an extremely strong upward curl in the longitudinal direction, the bills may not be able to be shaped into a complete W-shape over their entire length by the shaping mechanism, and may not be able to be given sufficient stiffness. In such a case, the bills may return to their curling tendency the moment they leave the shaping mechanism, and the bill's rear end may curl up in such a way that it escapes from the blades, causing the bill's rear to fall onto the guide member 710 before coming into contact with the blades. However, according to the configuration of this embodiment, even in such a case, the bill's rear end may be caught by the guide member and prevented from moving forward, and then captured by the tip of the descending blade and scraped backward. As a result, the bills are prevented from falling off the dispensing tray.
Wrinkled banknotes, whose stiffness has been significantly reduced, can also be processed in the same manner.

Next, taking into account the configurations and functions of the impeller 650, lever 670, guide member 710, etc. described above, the operation of the impeller to push the banknotes discharged from the forming mechanism 550 backward as the lever pushes them downward will be further explained.
12(g) and (h), when the downwardly rotating blade 654c comes into contact with the rear of the banknote B discharged from the forming mechanism 550 onto the dispensing tray while the rear of the banknote is still in the air, the high friction area 656 reliably captures the banknote and starts to forcibly scrape it downward and backward in cooperation with the pressing action of the lever. That is, the banknote discharged from the forming mechanism is biased forward, so that it is trying to move in the air toward the leading edge of the dispensing tray 700. In response to this, by bringing the blade 654c moving downward into contact with the rear of the banknote in the air as shown in the figure, the momentum of the banknote trying to move forward is reduced, the movement in the forward direction is stopped, and it can be further guided in the direction in which the blade 654c rotates (downward and backward).
In the illustrated embodiment, a configuration example using a new lever 670 in which the lever shaft 672 is arranged in the discharge conveying path 510 upstream of the forming mechanism is shown, but this is only one example, and a conventional lever (FIG. 10) in which the lever shaft is arranged outside the terminal end of the discharge conveying path, i.e., above the dispensing tray, may also be used. In other words, even in a discharge conveying stacking section equipped with a conventional lever, the banknote scraping effect can be obtained by applying the impeller and guide member 710.

12(g) and 12(h), when the blade 654c captures the rear portion of the banknote B in the air and continues to rotate downward, the blade 654c pushes the rear portion of the banknote down until it contacts the upper surface 716 and the rear edge 716a of the guide member 710. At this point, the rear portion of the banknote is held between the high friction area 656 and the rear edge 716a. Therefore, as the blade continues to rotate, the banknote moves rearward along the curved guide surface 720 and the rear guide surface 722, as shown in Figs. 13 and 14, respectively.
14(O), the blade 654c has almost left the rear end of the bill, so the bill stops moving backward. If necessary, a stopper may be provided at the end of the retreat space 702 to align the rear ends of the bills being scraped backward.
As described above, the blade 654c comes into contact with the rear part of the banknote discharged from the forming mechanism at a position forward and above the upper surface 716 of the guide member and starts to scrape it back downward and backward (the opposite direction to the discharge direction of the banknote) at a timing earlier than the rear part of the banknote discharged from the forming mechanism falls onto (contacts) the upper surface 716 of the guide member. In other words, the contact position C between the blade tip and the banknote can be made a farther position on the rotation trajectory of the blade tip. Therefore, the banknote can start to be pulled backward at an early stage before it has completely landed on the dispensing tray, so that the processing speed of banknote accumulation can be increased.

Furthermore, by providing the guide member 710, the rear part of the falling banknote can come into contact with the rear edge 716a of the guide member when it is in a position above the upper surface 701 of the dispensing tray. In other words, the rear part of the banknote can be caught by the rear edge 716a at an early timing before the rear part of the banknote lands on the dispensing tray. Therefore, a banknote that has once jumped out from the front edge of the dispensing tray and then lands on the dispensing tray can be quickly pulled backward and stopped at an optimal position.
According to the above configuration, the rear ends of all banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray can be sequentially aligned in a line regardless of the longitudinal size of the banknotes, thereby preventing the banknotes from excessively protruding or falling off the leading edge of the dispensing tray, and optimizing the state of multiple banknotes stacked on the dispensing tray for a user to remove all at once.
In addition, there is a strong demand for making the dispensing tray as small and short as possible, and since the rear ends of the discharged banknotes can be aligned based on the back of the dispensing tray, it is possible to meet such demands.

Next, the configuration and operation of the guide member and the impeller according to the present invention for pulling bills backward (screw and sweep) will be described in more detail while comparing with the configuration and operation of a conventional impeller.
Conventionally, the blade wheel used to hold down the banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray only intended to prevent the banknotes from flying forward by holding them down on the dispensing tray with the downward rotating blades. In other words, the conventional blades only played the role of holding down the discharged banknotes to prevent them from floating up and flying forward, and held down the banknotes after they landed on the top surface of the dispensing tray or just before they landed. Furthermore, the tip of the blade starts to rotate backward while elastically deforming after it contacts the top surface of the dispensing tray with the banknote between them, but since the top surface of the dispensing tray is a flat surface, even if the tip of the blade moves backward, it cannot move the banknote in the same direction. In other words, in the conventional blade wheel, after the tip of the blade contacts the banknote, the tip of the blade merely moves backward while sliding on the top surface of the banknote located between the top surface of the dispensing tray and the tip of the blade, and does not have the function of moving the banknote that has landed on the dispensing tray backward.

In contrast, in this embodiment, when a banknote is discharged from the forming mechanism 550, the wing tips are brought into contact with the rear of the banknote at a timing sufficiently earlier than the banknote lands on the upper surface of the dispensing tray, that is, at an appropriately early timing immediately after the banknote is discharged, to start decelerating and changing the direction of the banknote. The banknote continues to descend backward until the back surface of the banknote portion that contacts the wing tips comes into contact with the upper surface of the guide member or the rear edge (which is located higher than the upper surface of the dispensing tray). After the wing tips start to clamp the banknote between the guide member's front projection 715 and the banknote, the entire banknote can be moved smoothly downward and backward along the curved guide surface 720.
The tip of the wing starts to elastically deform while pinching the bill between itself and the hard guide member 710. As the tip of the bill moves elastically through the rear end edge 716a of the guide member, to the curved guide surface 720, and to the rear guide surface 722, the tip of the wing elastically deforms to conform to each part of the guide member, increasing the contact area with the bill surface (without causing slippage between the bill) and ensuring a long time for scraping the bill while in contact. In other words, the contact area of the tip of the wing with the bill increases, and the pressure force increases, so the scraping force increases, enabling reliable scraping without slippage between the bill and the bill.

In addition, conventional impellers do not have the effect of pulling the bills in the opposite direction to the direction of dispensing, and the idea of using the impeller to pull the bills in the opposite direction did not exist. In contrast, in the present invention, a guide member with an upper surface higher than the upper surface of the dispensing tray is provided in a position where it interferes with the impeller, thereby realizing a reliable pulling effect through the cooperation of the guide member and the impeller.
In addition, the falling position of the banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray from the nip portion n1 between the drive roller and the tension roller may vary in the front-to-rear direction depending on the strength of the curling tendency of the banknotes, etc., but in the present invention, the blades of the impeller capture the banknotes that are about to fall farther in the air, and then cooperate with the guide member to scrape them in the opposite direction to the discharge direction. In the absence of a guide member, the blades press the banknotes against the flat upper surface of the dispensing tray, so although a force can be exerted to press the banknotes downward (a force to stop them), no force is generated to pull them backwards.

In particular, the guide member in this embodiment has a curved guide surface 720 that is connected to the rear edge of the upper surface and curves downward from the upper front to the lower rear, and since this curved surface roughly coincides with the rotational trajectory of the blades, the banknotes can be slid rearward with ease and scraped aside.
The curved shape of the curved guide surface 720 is configured to overlap with the circular path of the tip of the blade centered on the rotation axis 552. The radius of curvature of the curved guide surface is configured to be smaller than the radius of curvature of the circle of the tip of the blade. However, the curved guide surface does not have to be in an arc shape, and it may have any curved shape that can smoothly guide the banknote backward while pinching the rear part of the banknote between the curved guide surface and the tip of the blade.
Furthermore, by setting the frictional resistance of the surface of the guide member 710 that comes into contact with the banknote small (smaller than the frictional resistance between it and the upper surface of the dispensing tray), it is possible to improve the sliding between the banknote and the guide member, making the movement backward even smoother.
In the second unit (banknote discharge/stacking device, lump-sum payment unit) M2 equipped with the shaping mechanism 550, the stiffness of the banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray is strengthened and the left and right ends of the short sides are shaped to incline upward, so that it is possible to prevent subsequent curved banknotes from causing already-stacking banknotes to drop and to prevent the curved banknotes themselves from falling from the dispensing tray even without the guide member 710. Therefore, when a shaping mechanism is provided, the guide member is not an essential component for preventing curved banknotes from falling from the dispensing tray.

However, in order to improve the alignment of banknotes on the dispensing tray and to ensure that they do not fall, the cooperation between the guide member and the blades and the action on the banknotes is useful.
In addition, the blades of the impeller, which rotates continuously, press down the rear of the already stacked banknotes between them and the guide member, which also helps to eliminate the problem of subsequent banknotes pushing out the already stacked banknotes.
Furthermore, while the advantage of the forming mechanism 550 in the above embodiment has been described as being that it can correct banknotes that have a tendency to curl upward, it goes without saying that the forming mechanism also simultaneously has the function of correcting banknotes that have a tendency to curl downward.

<Measures to deal with banknotes with reduced stiffness>
Next, if the forming mechanism 550 is not provided in the discharge, transport, and stacking section 500, that is, if the flanges 605, 607, and 609 are not provided, weak banknotes will be discharged onto the dispensing tray from the nip n1 of the final roller pair (drive rollers 555, 600 and tension rollers 556, 601). In this configuration, weak banknotes after discharge must move forward using only their own stiffness and must fall onto the dispensing tray while lifting the lever 670 with their stiffness. Banknotes with stiffness below a certain level are crushed by the lever and cannot move forward beyond the lever.
That is, when a bill with a stiffness below a certain level is conveyed along the discharge conveying path 510, regardless of whether it has a curling tendency or not, if the flanges 605, 607, and 609 are not present, the bill cannot land at an appropriate position on the dispensing tray 700 while pushing up the lever 670 sufficiently in the process of being discharged onto the dispensing tray. In other words, the lever does not rise fully during dispensing and keeps a low posture, so the bill cannot pass over the lever and advance forward, and is crushed by the lever. For this reason, bills with weak stiffness are likely to be crushed in the narrow space between the lower surface of the lever that remains lowered and the upper surface of the dispensing tray. When multiple bills are discharged as change, if even one bill with reduced stiffness is included, it can cause the subsequent bills to be discharged improperly and aligned improperly.

In this embodiment, the forming mechanism 550 can strengthen the stiffness of banknotes whose stiffness has fallen below a predetermined level, thereby eliminating the above-mentioned problems.
Furthermore, as already explained, the lever shaft 672 is positioned upstream of the drive shaft (rotation shaft) 552 of the final roller pair, and the conveying roller 517 conveys the bill in the forward direction with strong force, so that the lever can be pushed up with strong force even for bills with extremely weak stiffness.
The weight of lever 670 and the initial angle of the lever (the angle of inclination at the time of the lowest position) are set so that banknotes whose stiffness has dropped below a certain level can be lifted. For example, the weight of the lever excluding weight 675 is about 10 g, and the initial angle θ is about 21°.

[Banknote Ejection and Transport Device: Second Embodiment]
According to the banknote discharge/stacking device M2 of the second embodiment, even if the banknote is severely deteriorated (wrinkled banknote), the banknote can be formed into the required shape by the forming mechanism 550 to strengthen its stiffness, and then discharged and stacked in a normal state onto the dispensing tray.
If the stiffness of the dispensed banknote B has decreased significantly, i.e., if the banknote is wrinkled, even if the forming mechanism 550 is used to form the short side shape of the banknote into a specified shape, it is not possible to sufficiently strengthen the stiffness to the same extent as a normal banknote that has sufficient stiffness.

FIG. 15 is a comparative example showing a configuration example in which the gap G2 of a banknote discharge/stacking device is enlarged, and is a partially sectional front view showing a state in which a banknote with significantly reduced stiffness passes through a forming mechanism in which the gap G2 is set excessively large.
When a bill with significantly reduced stiffness passes through the forming mechanism 550, if the distance (gap G2) between the open portion 673 between the branch ends 670a at the tip of the lever and the central flange 605 is too large, in other words, if the flange width W1 is too small compared to the width W3 of the open portion 673, the gap G2 becomes large, and as shown in the figure, a part of the bill falls (bites) into this gap G2, making it difficult to push up the lever. That is, a bill with significantly reduced stiffness has a tendency for the tip edge portion corresponding to the gap G2 to be crushed and enter the gap before the lever is pushed up. Furthermore, as the bill advances, the trailing portion is also crushed following the tip and enters the gap G2. Therefore, the stiffness of the portion that has entered the gap G2 decreases, and the force (strength) to push up the lever decreases.

As a specific numerical value, it is assumed that a wrinkled banknote will fall into gap G2 to a depth of about 2.5 mm, and the occurrence of this falling portion will cause the height position of the lever on rotation shaft 552 to drop by 2.5 mm. This will cause the lever angle to be approximately 7.5 degrees downward by that amount. In other words, if the banknote does not enter the gap by 2.5 mm, the lever angle will be 7.5 degrees upward, which is its original position. If the banknote is unable to push up the lever sufficiently and the lever angle drops in this way, there is an increased risk of the banknote buckling when it comes into contact with the top surface of the dispensing tray, causing a jam.
To explain this in terms of the relationship between the central flange 605 and the drive roller 555 shown in FIG. 15, the shorter the distance between the upper corner 605a of the central flange and the upper corner 555a of the drive roller, the stronger the force (stiffness) that holds the banknote portion located between the corners. Compared to the distance between the corner 605a of the central flange 605 and the corner 555a of the drive roller 555 according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the distance of the corresponding portion in FIG. 15 is significantly longer. Therefore, in the configuration example of FIG. 15, the banknote is more likely to enter the gap G2. When the banknote enters the gap G2, the banknote becomes bent, and the angle of the lever decreases by the amount of the banknote that entered the gap. This also applies to the relationship between the central flange 605 and the other drive roller 600.

<Discharge, transport and accumulation section>
In order to deal with such a problem, the discharge, transport and accumulation section 500 optimizes the relationship between the opening 673 at the tip of the lever and the central flange 605 .
Other characteristic features of the discharge, transport and stacking section 500 will be described below with reference to FIGS.
In the forming mechanism 550, the ratio of the width W1 of the central flange to the width W3 of the opening is set so as to prevent a portion of a banknote whose stiffness has significantly deteriorated from falling into the gap G2 formed between both inner edges of the opening 673 of the lever and both outer surfaces of the central flange 605.
In addition to forming the banknote into a W shape by the forming mechanism 550, by making the central flange wide and narrowing the gap G2 appropriately, it is possible to increase the stiffness to a degree that the lever can be sufficiently pushed up to improve accumulation even with crumpled banknotes, and the banknotes can be discharged in an upward position.

As an example of the configuration of an actual device, when the width dimension W1 of the central flange is 6.0 mm and the width dimension W3 of the lever opening 673 is 9.2 mm, it is possible to reliably prevent the falling of crumpled bills and to fully prevent the buckling of bills. According to an experiment, the optimal ratio of the width dimension W1 of the central flange to the width dimension W3 of the opening is about 0.65. In the above example of dimensions, the values of the left and right gaps G2 are 1.6 mm each.
In this way, in the present invention, the width W3 of the opening of the lever is kept constant, while the width W1 of the central flange is made larger than the width of the outer flange, and the gap G2 is appropriately small, thereby preventing the bill from falling. Therefore, even if the bill is wrinkled and its stiffness has significantly decreased, it is pushed up by the outer peripheral surface of the central flange, thereby increasing its shape retention (stiffness) and making it possible to lift the lever. In other words, by adjusting the size of the gap, the backup function of the wide outer peripheral surface of the central flange is improved, and the stiffness of the wrinkled bill can be made to be greater than the weight of the lever.

When a 20 gram weight 675 is fixed to the tip of the lever, the lever needs to be lifted including the weight of the banknote. However, since the lever shaft 672 is located behind the rotating shaft 552, it becomes possible to lift the lever with the back-up provided by the central flange.
From the above, a bill with significantly reduced stiffness, i.e., a wrinkled bill, can be defined as a bill that has become weak enough that a part of the bill falls into the gap G2 between the two when the ratio of the width W1 of the central flange to the width W3 of the open part at the tip of the lever is small enough to be below a predetermined value (for example, about 0.65). In other words, even if the weakness (reduction in stiffness) of the bill has progressed, if the weakness is such that a part of the bill does not fall into the excessive gap G2, the stiffness can be sufficiently strengthened by forming it into a W-shape, so that a part of the bill will not fall even if the gap G2 is large. In addition, even if a bill has become weak enough that a part of the bill falls into the excessive gap G2, if the ratio of the width W1 of the central flange to the width W3 of the open part at the tip of the lever is set so that the gap G2 is an appropriate value (for example, about 0.65 or more), it becomes possible to discharge the bill while pushing up the lever by strengthening the stiffness by forming it into a W-shape and by the backup effect of the bill by the central flange.
In addition, when the bills are formed into an M-shape, the ends of the wide bills are slanted downward and tend to droop and collide with the bills already stacked. In particular, in the case of bills with long short sides, even if the central flange or the roller pair grips the central portion and both outer portions, it is clear that the ends tend to droop due to their weight.

When a banknote is formed into a W-shape, both short sides S2 are inclined upward, and the top P3' is gripped by the outer flange, so it is less likely to droop. However, in reality, there is a ceiling (frame 660), so both short sides S2 are lowered slightly when they hit the ceiling and are transported along the ceiling. However, they do not droop so much that they interfere with already stacked banknotes.

[Banknote Discharge/Stacking Device: Third Embodiment]
FIG. 16 is a front view of the main part of the banknote discharging/stacking device M2 (discharging/transporting/stacking section 800) according to the third embodiment.
17 to 20 are vertical cross-sectional side views for explaining the configuration of the banknote discharging/stacking device M2 and the discharging and scraping operations. Note that the same parts as those in the discharging/transporting/stacking unit according to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The banknote discharge/stacking device M2 of the third embodiment does not have the forming mechanism of the first embodiment, but enables banknotes that have a tendency to curl and are discharged onto the dispensing tray to land in good alignment through cooperation between the impeller 650 and the guide member (guide protrusion) 710.
In this embodiment, when bills that have a curled tendency are discharged onto the dispensing tray, the curled tendency is restored, eliminating the problem of the bills falling off the dispensing tray or already stacked bills being pushed out and dropped due to friction between the bills.

<Basic configuration>
The banknote discharging/stacking device M2 has the following basic configuration.
That is, the discharge transport stacking section 800 that constitutes the banknote discharge stacking device M2 is a means for receiving and storing banknotes, and discharging and stacking banknotes discharged one by one from the return units 30, 40 that discharge the stored banknotes to the outside, one by one onto a dispensing tray, and is provided with a discharge transport path 510 that discharges and transports the discharged banknotes, a discharge transport mechanism 520 that applies a transport force to discharged banknote B (hereinafter referred to as banknote B) on the discharge transport path, a final discharge mechanism (hereinafter referred to as the discharge mechanism) 810 that is located downstream of the discharge transport path and discharges the discharged banknote onto the dispensing tray, and a dispensing tray 700 that stacks the banknotes discharged from the discharge mechanism.

The discharge mechanism 810 comprises a rotating shaft (drive shaft) 552 arranged perpendicular to the transport direction of the dispensed banknote B and driven to rotate in the discharge direction, and a final roller pair consisting of drive rollers 555, 600 whose axis is fixed to the rotating shaft, and driven rollers 556, 601 which form nip portions n1 for transporting banknotes between themselves and the respective drive rollers.
A banknote pressure lever 670 is supported at its rear part on a lever shaft (parallel to the rotation shaft) 672, which is located upstream of the rotation shaft 552 in the discharge direction, so that it can freely rotate in the vertical direction.The banknote pressure lever is configured so that when it is in the lowest position, its front part can contact the top surface of the dispensing tray (or the top surfaces of already deposited banknotes) due to its own weight.

As the bill B passes through the discharge mechanism 560, the bill presser lever 670 rotates up and down due to the action of the passing bill while in contact with the lower surface of the bill presser lever 670.
On both axially outer sides of each of the drive rollers 555 and 600, impellers 650 are arranged, each having a shaft core fixed to a rotary shaft 552.
A guide member (guide protrusion) 710 is provided on the upper surface of the coin dispensing tray, which interferes with the movement trajectory of the blade 654, as an upward protrusion that contacts the blade and allows it to rotate (pass) while elastically deforming it.
The configurations of the impeller and guide member are the same as those in the first embodiment, so a duplicated description thereof will be omitted.

<Discharge, transport and accumulation section>
The discharge, transport and stacking section 800 will be described in detail below.
The discharging, conveying, and stacking section 500 according to the first embodiment has a shaping mechanism 550 including drive rollers 555 and 600, tension rollers 556 and 601, and flanges 605, 607, and 609. In other words, all of the banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray have had their longitudinal curling tendency eliminated or reduced by the shaping mechanism.
In contrast, the discharging/transporting/stacking section 800 according to the third embodiment only includes a discharging mechanism 810 consisting of the drive rollers 555, 660 and the tension rollers 556, 601. The discharging mechanism 810 does not have the flanges 605, 607, 609 and therefore does not have the function of forming the short sides of the banknotes into a predetermined shape to strengthen their stiffness. Impellers 650 are fixed to the rotation shafts 552 of the drive rollers at their axial cores and are arranged on both sides of the drive rollers in the axial direction.

When bills that have a tendency to curl upward are discharged from the discharge mechanism 810, they are discharged onto the dispensing tray in a curled state as shown in FIG.
When banknotes are discharged onto the dispensing tray by the drive rollers 555, 600 and tension rollers 556, 601 (final roller pair), banknotes that have a tendency to curl upwards may land on the dispensing tray while being pressed by lever 670, and their downwardly curved leading edge may interfere with the rear ends of already stacked banknotes and push them out, or they may fall from the leading edge of the dispensing tray due to their own weight.
In contrast, in this embodiment, the guide member protruding from the dispensing tray cooperates with the impeller to capture the bill in the right position immediately after it is discharged (in this example, the rear part of the bill) and prevent it from moving forward excessively (moving it backward), thereby preventing it from falling from the dispensing tray under its own weight. Also, once a bill has been accumulated, it is held down on the guide member by the impeller that continuously rotates around its rear part and is therefore unable to move forward, preventing it from being pushed out by the following bills.

According to this embodiment, in the discharge, transport and stacking unit 800 equipped with a discharge mechanism 810 that has the function of simply discharging the bills to the dispensing tray without correcting the curling tendency caused by shaping the short side shape of the bills, in order to eliminate the problem of discharged bills flying out of the dispensing tray and falling, or of already-stacked bills being pushed out, the dispensing tray equipped with a guide member can be simply replaced with an existing one that does not have a guide member.

<Collecting operation by discharge, transport and accumulation section>
Hereinafter, the banknote gathering operation by the discharge, transport and stacking unit 800 according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to Figs.
Figures 17(a) to (d) are explanatory diagrams (side vertical cross-sectional views) of the operation of the discharge, transport, and stacking unit 800, showing the state from when the tip of a banknote B that has a tendency to curl upward and has been discharged and transported through the discharge and transport path abuts against the lever and pushes up the lever, until just after the tip of the banknote passes through the discharge mechanism 810.

Figures 18(e) and (f) are explanatory diagrams (side vertical cross-sectional views) of the operation of the discharge, transporting and stacking section 500, showing the state just before and just after the rear end of banknote B passes through the discharge mechanism, and Figures 18(g), (h), Figures 19(i) to (l), and Figures 20(m) to (O) are diagrams for explaining the process by which banknotes fall onto the dispensing tray and the operational procedure by which the blades move the banknotes backwards.
The processing procedures in FIGS. 17(a) to (d) and FIGS. 18(e) and (f) are the same as those in FIGS. 11(a) to (d) and FIGS. 12(e) and (f), and therefore will be explained briefly.
In addition, the processing procedures in Figures 18(g), (h), Figures 19(i) to (l), and Figures 20(m) to (o) are the same as those in Figures 12(g), (h), Figures 13(i) to (l), and Figures 14(m) to (o) in the first embodiment, except that the discharged banknotes are curled upwards, so that the front and rear parts are curved downwards, and therefore, the following explanation will focus on the differences and reduce redundant explanations. Therefore, for the redundant parts for which explanations are omitted, please refer to the corresponding descriptions in the first embodiment for understanding.

In Fig. 17(a), the banknote B conveyed along the discharge conveying path 510 comes into contact with the lower surface of the lever 670 just before the nip n1 of the final roller pair and starts to press it. Since the lever shaft 672 is located behind the rotating shaft 552, the leading end of the banknote comes into contact with the lever at a position upstream of the rotating shaft and starts to push it up. Moreover, since a sufficiently long distance L3 is secured between the lever shaft and the contact point C, and the initial angle θ of the lever is set large, close to 180 degrees, it is possible to start pushing up the lever with a light force ((b), (c)). The leading end of the banknote that has a downward curvature is given a strong stiffness in the discharge conveying path 510 as in the first embodiment, and the curling tendency is temporarily corrected, so that the banknote can be pushed up.
When the banknote passes through the discharge mechanism 810 , it passes through a nip portion n 1 between each of the drive rollers 555 , 600 and each of the tension rollers 556 , 601 .

17(d), the leading edge of the bill has begun to protrude from the nip n1, and the lever is pushed up further by the bill. The leading edge of the bill immediately after being discharged from the nip n1 has restored its downward curve, but because the lever can be pushed up with a light force for the reasons described above, the leading edge can be pushed up with a light force without being defeated by the lever.
In Fig. 18(e), the front part of the bill, excluding the rear part that is sandwiched by the nip portion n1 between each driving roller and each driven roller, is curled downward, but the lever 670 is configured so that it can be pushed up with a light force. Therefore, the bill can continue to push up the lever as shown in the figure. The height position of the lever at this time is not the maximum height of the movable range of the lever, but it is pushed up to the maximum extent possible. In other words, the bill is discharged along the lower surface of the lever that has been pushed up to the height position shown in the figure, and the leading edge of the bill is in contact with the upper surface of the dispensing tray (the upper surface 705a of the retractable member).
13(f) shows the state in which the rear end of banknote B has completely passed through the discharge mechanism 810. The free banknote is not formed into a straight shape as in the first embodiment, so at this stage, the contact portion with the tip of the lever 670 is pressed downward and deformed into a concave shape as shown in the figure. Since this banknote has momentum as it is discharged in the discharge direction, if the impeller and guide member 710 were not present, it would try to be discharged along the underside of the lever. For this reason, it will come into contact with already stacked banknotes, pushing them out and causing them to fall, or it will easily fall from the tip of the dispensing tray itself.

18(g) and 18(h), the rear part of the bill that has left the nip portion n1 of the final roller pair has returned to its original shape, curled downward. The leading edge of the bill is about to protrude from the leading edge of the dispensing tray in a downwardly curved state, and if this state is left unchanged, there is a possibility that the bill will fall off the leading edge of the dispensing tray. In particular, when the length of the dispensing tray in the front-to-rear direction is being shortened, when the discharged bill lands on the dispensing tray while being held down by the lever, its leading edge will protrude significantly from the front edge of the shortened dispensing tray and will be more likely to fall.
In order to eliminate this problem, in the present invention, as shown in (g) and (h), after the rear end of the banknote leaves the nip portion n1, the blades 654 of the impeller and the guide member 710 cooperate to prevent the banknote from moving forward and scrape it backward.
That is, a guide member 710 as a protrusion is fixedly disposed on the upper surface of the dispensing tray corresponding to a retreat space 702 provided at the rear of the dispensing tray 700, at a position corresponding to the movement trajectory of the blades 654 of each impeller. The guide member and the impeller work together to cause banknotes B once discharged onto the dispensing tray to retreat toward the space 702, thereby eliminating the state in which the leading end protrudes from the leading edge of the dispensing tray.

The arrangement and height of the guide member 710 are configured so that the blades start to collect the bills when the rear portions of the bills that have fallen onto the dispensing tray are in the air before they fall onto the upper surface 716 or rear edge 716a of the guide member as shown in (g) and (h). In other words, the first contact between the falling bills and the blades is made when the bills are in the air (at the time (f) or (g)).
Furthermore, due to variations in the behavior of banknotes, the tips of the wings may come into contact with the rear of the banknote after it has fallen onto the upper surface of the guide member, or as soon as it falls; however, it has been confirmed that even in such cases the banknote can still be scraped backwards without any problems.
The length and positional relationship of each vane 654 are set so that the vanes 654 always come into sliding contact with the outer surface of the guide member 710 during the rotational movement.

In addition, the rotation speed of the impeller, the rotation timing of the blades relative to the discharged banknotes, and the length of the blades (the rotational trajectory of the blade tips) are selected so that the blades 654c rotating from above can capture the curved rear portions of the banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray and pull them down towards the guide member 710, as shown in Figures 18(g), (h), 19(i), and (j).
With this configuration, even if the discharged bill is about to fly out too far forward, the blades 654c can capture the rear end of the bill in the air at an early stage after the rear end of the bill is discharged and start to push it downward and backward. Furthermore, when the blades 654c reach the rear end edge 716a of the guide member, they start to pinch the rear end of the bill between the blades and the rear end edge, and thereafter, the entire bill can be pushed backward while being pinched between the blade tips and the curved guide surface 720 (FIGS. 19(k)(l), 20(m) to (O)).
Also, as in the first embodiment, by appropriately selecting and setting the timing of contact between each blade and each banknote, in other words, the rotation speed of each blade and the release speed of each banknote, the operation of forcibly pulling the banknote downward and backward can be started at the time when the blade contacts the rear part of the banknote in the air. After that, when the blade descends to a position where it contacts the upper surface and the rear end edge of the guide member, the rear part of the banknote is sandwiched between the blade and the guide member, so that the subsequent rotation of the blade reliably moves the banknote backward along the curved guide surface 720. Therefore, all banknotes are accumulated on the dispensing tray with their rear ends aligned regardless of the difference in longitudinal size, and do not fall from the leading edge of the dispensing tray.

18(g) to 20(O), the leading edge of the bill discharged onto the dispensing tray lands on the dispensing tray (on the retractable member 705) and is then pulled backward. When this phenomenon is viewed from the return port side, the bill is discharged in a state where it protrudes from the front edge of the dispensing tray, but immediately thereafter it is pulled backward and stops.
In addition, because the bills discharged from the discharge mechanism 810 have recovered from their curled state, there is a risk that the fall path and fall timing may vary. For this reason, the blades are not always able to capture the rear portion of the bill in the air at the same timing. It is also possible that the rear portion of the bill falls onto the guide member before the blades come into contact with it. However, according to this embodiment, even in such a case, the blades can pinch the rear portion of the bill between the blades and the guide member and scrape it backward.

To explain this in more detail, because the banknotes discharged from the discharge mechanism 810 have a tendency to curl, the curl returns the moment the banknote leaves the discharge mechanism, causing the rear end of the banknote to curl in a way that escapes the blades, and it is possible that the rear of the banknote will fall onto the guide member 710 before coming into contact with the blades. However, with the configuration of this embodiment, even in such a case, the rear of the banknote will get caught on the guide member and prevented from moving forward, and will then be captured by the tip of the descending blade and scraped backward. As a result, the banknote is prevented from falling out of the dispensing tray.

Next, taking into consideration the configurations and functions of the above-mentioned impeller 650, lever 670, guide member 710, etc., the operation of the impeller to push the banknotes discharged from the discharge mechanism 810 backward as the lever pushes them downward will be further explained.
18(g) and (h), when the downwardly rotating blade 654c comes into contact with the rear of the bill B discharged from the discharge mechanism 810 onto the dispensing tray while the rear of the bill is still in the air, the blade reliably captures the bill and starts to forcibly scrape it downward and backward in cooperation with the pressing action of the lever. That is, the bill discharged from the discharge mechanism 810 is biased forward, so that the bill is about to move in the air toward the leading edge of the dispensing tray 700. In response to this, the blade 654c moving downward is brought into contact with the rear of the bill in the air as shown in the figure, thereby reducing the momentum of the bill trying to move forward, stopping the forward movement, and further guiding the bill in the direction in which the blade 654c rotates (downward and backward).
18(g) and (h), when the blade 654c captures the rear of the bill B in the air and continues to rotate downward, the blade 654c pushes the rear of the bill down until it contacts the upper surface 716 and rear edge 716a of the guide member 710, as shown in FIG. 19(i) and (j). At this point, the rear of the bill is held between the lower surface (high friction area 656) of the blade 654c and the rear edge 716a. Therefore, as the blade continues to rotate, the bill moves rearward along the curved guide surface 720 and rear guide surface 722.

At the time shown in FIG. 20 (O), the blade 654c has almost completely separated from the rear end of the bill, so the bill stops moving backward. If necessary, a stopper may be provided at the end of the retreat space 702 to align the rear ends of each bill being scraped backward.

As described above, the blade 654c comes into contact with the rear part of the bill discharged from the discharge mechanism 810 at a position forward and above the rear edge 716a and starts to scrape it back downward and backward (in the opposite direction to the bill discharge direction) at a timing earlier than the rear part of the bill discharged from the discharge mechanism 810 falls onto (contacts) the rear edge 716a. In other words, the contact position (first contact position) C1 between the blade and the bill can be set to a position farther away on the blade rotation trajectory. Therefore, the bill can start to be pulled backward at an early stage before the bill has landed on the dispensing tray, so that the processing speed of the bill stacking can be increased.
Furthermore, by providing the guide member 710, the rear end edge 716a of the guide member can come into contact with the falling banknote when the rear end of the banknote is in a position above the upper surface 701 of the dispensing tray. In other words, the rear end edge 716a can hook the rear end of the banknote at an early timing before the rear end of the banknote lands on the dispensing tray. Therefore, the banknote that once lands on the dispensing tray after jumping out from the front end edge of the dispensing tray can be quickly pulled backward and stopped at an optimal position. In particular, in the case of a crumpled banknote, the banknote may not be pulled backward sufficiently when it is discharged onto the dispensing tray by simply pressing it with the blades. Therefore, by setting the point where the blades contact the banknote in the air and pulling it in cooperation with the guide member, the crumpled banknote can be collected reliably.

According to the above configuration, the rear ends of all banknotes discharged onto the dispensing tray can be sequentially aligned in a line regardless of the longitudinal size of the banknotes, thereby preventing the banknotes from excessively protruding or falling off the leading edge of the dispensing tray, and optimizing the state of multiple banknotes stacked on the dispensing tray for a user to remove all at once.
In addition, there is a strong demand for making the dispensing tray as small and short as possible, and since the rear ends of the discharged banknotes can be aligned based on the back of the dispensing tray, it is possible to meet such demands.

As described above, this embodiment can eliminate the problem that the momentum of the bill when it is released from the discharge mechanism 550 causes the leading edge of the bill to go over the front edge of the dispensing tray and slide down under its own weight. In addition, the blades of the impeller, which rotates continuously, press the rear of the already-stacked bill between the guide member, eliminating the problem of subsequent bills pushing out the already-stacked bills.

[Summary of the configuration, action, and effect of the present invention]
First Invention (First and Second Embodiments)
The paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 according to a first embodiment of the first present invention is a means for storing transported paper sheets and discharging and stacking paper sheets discharged from the return units 30, 40, which discharge the stored paper sheets to the outside, one by one onto the discharge tray 700 with the short side at the front, and is equipped with a discharge/conveying path 510 for transporting the paper sheets to the discharge tray, and a forming mechanism 550 for forming the short side shape (the shape of the side extending in a direction intersecting the conveying direction) of the paper sheets transported along the discharge/conveying path into a predetermined shape (a shape that reinforces the stiffness) over the entire longitudinal length before discharging the paper sheets onto the discharge tray.
During the forming operation by the forming mechanism 550, upward protrusions (bent portions protruding upward) and downward protrusions (bent portions protruding downward) are alternately formed along the short side direction of the paper sheet, and both ends S2 of the short side of the paper sheet are inclined upward (protruding diagonally upward).
Demand for recycling machines is increasing in paper processing devices for banknotes, etc. When dispensing multiple banknotes, it is desirable to configure the device so that the banknotes are continuously dispensed one by one onto a discharge tray so that the user can remove the stack of banknotes only after all the banknotes have been accumulated, in order to increase processing speed.
In conventional machines that dispense one bill at a time, the next bill is not dispensed unless the user removes the dispensed bill, so it takes time to dispense all of the bills, but even if the dispensed bill is curled, there is no problem of it colliding with the bills already stacked. In conventional machines, the time required to dispense one bill out of ten usually takes about 2 seconds, depending on the time it takes the user to remove the bill.

On the other hand, when the banknotes are successively discharged one by one onto the discharge tray and then stacked thereon, the discharge speed of the banknotes is the same as with conventional equipment, but the time required to dispense one out of ten banknotes can be reduced to 1.5 seconds.
However, when stacking bills continuously, a new problem of collisions with existing bills arises, but this problem can be solved by a simple specification.
That is, the present invention can prevent discharge and stacking problems on the discharge tray caused by curling tendencies formed on banknotes (such as pushing out of preceding banknotes, uneven stacking, variation in the stopping position of the banknotes themselves, dropping, etc.) In addition to curling tendencies, discharge and stacking problems caused by deformation such as folds and wrinkles formed on banknotes and reduced stiffness can also be eliminated.
Both ends S2, P3 of the short side of the banknote are located above the downward protrusion P2, and collision with already stacked banknotes can be avoided. By maintaining the height of the upward protrusions P3 at both ends at a position equal to or higher than the upward protrusion P1 in the center, the possibility of the collision can be further reduced.

In the paper sheet discharging/stacking device M2 according to the second embodiment, the shape of the short sides of the paper sheets formed by the forming mechanism 550 is substantially symmetrical.
The short side shape of the paper sheet after it has been formed by the forming mechanism may be such that both ends are retracted upward, but taking into consideration the process of it being discharged onto the discharge tray, the seating stability after discharge, and ease of handling for the user, it is preferable that it has a left-right symmetrical shape.

In the paper sheet discharging/stacking device M2 according to the third embodiment, the shape of the short sides of the paper sheets formed by the forming mechanism 550 is substantially W-shaped.
The short side shape of the paper sheet after being formed by the forming mechanism may be such that both ends are retracted upward, but an approximately W-shape with an upward protrusion P1 in the center and downward protrusions P2 on either side of it is highly practical as it reduces the number of parts in the forming mechanism and makes it more compact.

In the paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 relating to the fourth embodiment, the forming mechanism 550 is characterized in that it at least comprises a rotating shaft 552 arranged perpendicular to the paper sheet conveying direction and rotated in the discharge direction, a central flange 605 having its axis fixed to the rotating shaft, two roller pairs consisting of two drive rollers 555, 600 arranged on both axial sides of the central flange at a predetermined distance and having their axis fixed by the rotating shaft, and driven rollers 556, 601 which form nips n1 for paper sheet transport between each of the drive rollers, and outer flanges 607, 609 arranged axially outside the two drive rollers and having their axis fixed to the rotating shaft.
Conventional discharge mechanisms that dispense paper sheets onto a payment tray are made up of a pair of rollers consisting of a drive roller and a driven roller, but the present invention is configured by simply adding three flanges to the conventional discharge mechanism. By keeping the number of parts to a bare minimum, the configuration can be simplified and made compact. In addition, although there is a limit to the space available for storage in the empty space E, this configuration allows for a more flexible design.

The fifth embodiment of the paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 is provided with a paper sheet holding lever 670 whose rear part is supported so as to be freely rotatable in the vertical direction by a lever shaft 672 which is arranged upstream of the rotation shaft 552 in the paper sheet transport direction and above the discharge/conveying path 510, and whose front part (the part forward of the lever shaft) protrudes beyond the rotation shaft onto the discharge tray, and which is configured so that as the paper sheets pass through the forming mechanism, the paper sheet holding lever rotates up and down due to the action of the paper sheets passing below it, and the paper sheet holding lever is arranged at an axial position where it interferes with the central flange 605, and the part of the paper sheet holding lever which interferes with the central flange is provided with an opening 673 which allows the lever to rotate up and down, avoiding the central flange.
The lever shaft is located upstream of the rotating shaft 552, and the front part of the lever protrudes forward beyond the rotating shaft 552. This makes the lever longer and increases the initial angle θ when it descends, making it easier to push up the lever when paper is inserted.

The paper discharge/stacking device M2 according to the sixth embodiment is characterized in that when the paper sheet holding lever 670 is lowered, a part of the paper sheet holding lever interferes with the discharge/conveyance path.
The paper sheet comes into contact with the lever and starts to push it up inside the discharge conveying path 510 upstream of the forming mechanism 550. Since the distance between the lever shaft and the contact part C of the lever and the leading edge of the paper sheet can be shortened, it becomes easier for the paper sheet to push up the lever.

The seventh embodiment of the paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 is characterized in that it is configured to prevent part of a paper sheet from falling between the two inner edges of the opening portion 673 of the paper sheet holding lever 670 and the two outer surfaces of the central flange 605.
In other words, the width of the central flange is configured to prevent a portion of the sheet from falling into the gap G2 formed between the inner edges of the opening and the outer surfaces of the central flange.
Paper sheets with extremely low stiffness (wrinkled paper sheets) cannot push up the paper sheet holding lever sufficiently after being discharged from the forming mechanism, and may result in buckling, etc. The reason for this is that the gap between the center flange and the opening of the paper sheet holding lever is too large, causing part of the paper sheet to fall into the gap, reducing stiffness and decreasing the force pushing up the paper sheet holding lever.
In the present invention, the width of the central flange is made sufficiently large to eliminate or reduce the gap, thereby preventing part of a wrinkled sheet from falling into the gap, and the outer peripheral surface of the central flange supports the sheet, maintaining it in an upward position and preventing it from being pushed down by the sheet holding lever.

In the eighth embodiment of the paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2, the discharge tray 700 is characterized by comprising a base surface 701, protrusions 703 each protruding forward from both widthwise ends of the base surface and having an upwardly inclined surface 703a on its upper surface, a retractable member (inclined surface forming member) 705 whose rear part is pivotally supported within a groove or hole 704 provided on the inner edge of each protrusion, thereby allowing the front part to rotate in the vertical direction, and an elastic member that biases the retractable member to an upwardly protruding position.
Since the retractable member is always in a protruding state, it has the function of applying a brake to the paper sheets being discharged, but the protruding retractable member can be a slight hindrance when a user tries to remove paper sheets accumulated on the discharge tray. For this reason, the retractable member is configured so that it can be retracted by the user pushing it down.

The recycle type paper sheet processing device 1 of the ninth embodiment comprises a paper sheet input port (cash inlet) 5, an introduction section 11 that receives and transports (carries in) the paper sheets input from the input port along the longitudinal direction of the paper sheets, a recycle unit 30, 40 that receives and stores the paper sheets and discharges the stored paper sheets to the outside, and any of the paper sheet discharge and stacking devices M2 described above, and is characterized in that the recycle unit comprises a recycle drum that accumulates and stores paper sheets one by one on its outer surface by rotating forward and discharges paper sheets one by one from the outer surface by rotating reversely.
This recycling type paper processing device has all the functions and advantages of each of the paper discharge/stacking devices M2 described above.

Second Invention (Third Embodiment)
The paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 relating to the first example of the second present invention is a means for storing transported paper sheets and discharging and stacking paper sheets discharged from the return units 30, 40 which discharge the stored paper sheets to the outside, one by one with the short side of the paper sheet leading onto the discharge tray 700, and is provided with a discharge/conveying path 510 for transporting paper sheets to the discharge tray, a final discharge mechanism 810 located downstream of the discharge/conveying path, the discharge tray 700 for stacking banknotes discharged from the final discharge mechanism, and a paper sheet holding lever 670 whose rear part is axially supported so as to be freely rotatable in the vertical direction and whose front part protrudes above the discharge tray in order to hold down paper sheets discharged from the final discharge mechanism.
The final discharge mechanism 810 comprises a rotating shaft 552 arranged perpendicular to the paper sheet transport direction and driven to rotate in the discharge direction, and a final roller pair consisting of at least two drive rollers 555, 600 whose axis is fixed to the rotating shaft, and driven rollers 601, 605 which respectively form nip portions n1 for transporting paper sheets between the drive rollers.

Axial outer sides of each driving roller are provided with impellers 650, each of which has a shaft core fixed to a rotating shaft. The blades of each impeller have a moving trajectory that contacts and pushes down the banknotes discharged from the final discharge mechanism in the process of rotating downward toward the upper surface of the discharge tray, and a guide protrusion (guide member) 710 is provided on the upper surface of the discharge tray that interferes with the moving trajectory of the blade, allowing the blade to rotate (pass) while interfering with and elastically deforming the blade. The guide protrusion has first contact parts 716, 716a that contact the rear part of the paper sheet discharged onto the discharge tray by the final discharge mechanism (final roller pair) at a position higher than the upper surface of the discharge tray (prior to the upper surface of the discharge tray), and a (curved) guide surface 720 that extends (curved) downward from the first contact part to the rear (upstream) in the discharge direction.
Since the first contact portion is located at a position where it comes into contact with the tip of the rotating blade, the tip of the blade passes through while elastically deforming and making contact with it. In order to enable cooperation with the blade to scrape the paper sheets backward, the shapes and positional relationship of the curved guide surface 720 and the rear guide surface 722 are also selected so that the tip of the blade moves while elastically deforming and making contact with it.

The paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 in the second embodiment is characterized in that the trajectory of the blades' movement is set so that the first contact between the blades and the paper sheet occurs when the rear part of the paper sheet is in the air, and consistency with the discharge timing of the paper sheet is ensured.
At an early stage after the trailing end of the paper sheet leaves the final discharge mechanism, that is, while the trailing end of the paper sheet is in the air, the blades capture the paper sheet and start to scrape it backward, thereby making it possible to reliably prevent the paper sheet from flying out from the tip of the discharge tray and falling.

The paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 in the third embodiment is characterized in that, as the blade 654 contacts the rear of the paper sheet at a position above the first contact portion and then rotates downward and backward, the portion of the paper sheet in contact with the blade moves sequentially together with the blade through the first contact portion and toward the curved guide surface 720.
By aligning the timing of the paper sheet discharge with the timing of the movement of the blades so that the blades come into contact with the rear of the paper sheet above the first contact portion, i.e., in the air, the scraping action toward the rear can be started early. As a result, the rear of the paper sheet can be brought into contact with the first contact portion of the guide member early, and the scraping action toward the rear can be continued quickly.

In the fourth embodiment of the paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2, the paper sheet holding lever 670 is supported at its rear portion by a lever shaft 672 that is located upstream of the rotating shaft 552 in the paper sheet transport direction and above the discharge/transport path 510 so as to be freely rotatable in the vertical direction, and its front portion protrudes beyond the rotating shaft onto the discharge tray.
The lever shaft at the base end of the paper sheet holding lever is located upstream of the final discharge mechanism, so the stiffness of paper sheets that have a tendency to curl as they are transported through the discharge transport path is temporarily strengthened, making it possible to push up the paper sheet holding lever with a weak force. The impeller and guide protrusion work in cooperation with the paper sheet holding lever to control the falling path of the banknotes and to scrape them backwards.

In the paper sheet discharge/stacking device M2 relating to the fifth embodiment, the discharge tray 700 is characterized by comprising a base surface 701, protrusions 703 each protruding forward from both widthwise ends of the base surface and having an upwardly inclined surface 703a on its upper surface, a retractable member (inclined surface forming member) 705 whose rear part is pivotally supported within a groove or hole 704 provided on the inner edge of each protrusion, thereby allowing the front part to rotate in the vertical direction, and an elastic member that biases the retractable member to an upwardly protruding position.
Since the retractable member is always in a protruding state, it has the function of applying a brake to the paper sheets being discharged, but the protruding retractable member can be a slight hindrance when a user tries to remove paper sheets accumulated on the discharge tray. For this reason, the retractable member is configured so that it can be retracted by the user pushing it down.

The recycle type paper processing device of the sixth embodiment comprises a paper feed inlet (cash inlet) 5, an introduction section 11 that receives and transports (carries in) the paper feed inserted from the inlet along the longitudinal direction of the paper feed, a recycle unit 30, 40 that receives and stores the paper feed and discharges the stored paper feed to the outside, and any of the paper feed discharge and stacking devices M2 described above, and is characterized in that the recycle unit comprises a recycle drum that accumulates and stores the paper feeds one by one on its outer surface by rotating forward and discharges the paper feeds one by one from the outer surface by rotating reversely.
This recycling type paper processing device has all the functions and advantages of each of the paper discharge/stacking devices M2 described above.

1...banknote processing device, 3...housing, M...deposit/withdrawal processing unit, M1...first unit, M2...second unit (paper discharge/accumulation device, lump-sum payout unit), 5...deposit/withdrawal port (insertion port), 7...payout port (discharge port), B...payout banknotes, P1, P2, P3...projection, 9a...deposit banknote transport path, 9b...stored banknote transport path, 9c...transport path inside casing, 11...lump-sum deposit section (introduction section), 15...recognition section, 30, 40...recycled banknote storage section (recycle unit) , 31, 35, 41, 45... return drum, 50... collection box, 60... casing, 61... first sorting section, 65... second sorting section, 65a... sorting piece, 100... return unit, 105, 110... bobbin, 106a... guide roller, 111a... guide roller, 200... return unit, 310... flapper, 500... discharge conveying and accumulating section, 510... discharge conveying path, 510a... conveying guide, 512a... roller, 514... flapper, 517... conveying roller, 520... Discharge and conveyance mechanism, 550... shaping mechanism, 552... rotating shaft, 555, 600... drive rollers, 556, 601... tension rollers, 562... base portion, 580... paper passage sensor, 605... central flange, 607, 609... outer flanges, 650... impeller, 652... base portion, 654... impeller, 656... high friction area, 656a... convex portion, 656b... concave portion, 660... frame, 670... lever, 670a... branch portion, 672... lever shaft, 673... release portion, 675... weight portion material, 700...coin dispensing tray (discharge tray), 701...base surface (first upper surface), 702...space, 703...protrusion, 703a...inclined surface (second upper surface), 704...groove (hole), 705...retractable member (inclined surface forming member), 705a...upper surface, 710...guide member (guide protrusion), 715...front protrusion, 716...upper surface, 716a...rear edge, 720...curved guide surface, 722...rear guide surface, 800...discharge transport stacking section, 810...final discharge mechanism, 1000...control means.

Claims (9)

1. A paper sheet ejection and stacking device that stores conveyed paper sheets and ejects and stacks paper sheets ejected from a return unit, the return unit ejecting the stored paper sheets to the outside, one by one on an ejection tray with a short side leading the paper sheets,
   a discharge conveying path for conveying the paper sheets to the discharge tray; and a shaping mechanism for shaping the short side shape of the paper sheets conveyed along the discharge conveying path to a predetermined shape over the entire length in the longitudinal direction, and then discharging the paper sheets onto the discharge tray,
   A paper sheet discharge and stacking device characterized in that, in the shaping by the shaping mechanism, upward protrusions and downward protrusions are alternately formed along the short side direction of the paper sheet, and both ends of the short side of the paper sheet are inclined upward.
2. The paper sheet discharge/stacking device according to claim 1, characterized in that the short side shape after the forming mechanism forms the paper sheet is approximately bilaterally symmetrical.
3. The paper sheet discharge/stacking device according to claim 1, characterized in that the short side shape after the forming mechanism forms the paper sheet is approximately W-shaped.
4. The paper discharge/accumulation device according to claim 1, characterized in that the forming mechanism comprises at least a rotating shaft arranged perpendicular to the paper sheet conveying direction and rotated in the discharge direction, a central flange having an axis fixed to the rotating shaft, two drive rollers arranged at a predetermined distance on both axial sides of the central flange and having their axes fixed by the rotating shaft, and two roller pairs consisting of driven rollers that form paper sheet conveying nips between the drive rollers, and outer flanges arranged axially outside the two drive rollers and having their axes fixed to the rotating shaft.
5. a paper sheet pressing lever whose rear portion is pivotally supported in the vertical direction by a lever shaft disposed upstream of the rotation shaft in the paper sheet conveying direction and above the discharge conveying path, and whose front portion protrudes above the rotation shaft onto the discharge tray,
   The paper sheet pressing lever is configured to rotate up and down by the action of the paper sheet passing under the paper sheet while the paper sheet passes through the forming mechanism,
   The paper sheet ejection and stacking device according to claim 4, characterized in that the paper sheet holding lever is arranged at an axial position where it interferes with the central flange, and the portion of the paper sheet holding lever that interferes with the central flange is provided with an opening portion that allows the paper sheet holding lever to rotate in the vertical direction, avoiding the central flange.
6. The paper sheet discharge/stacking device according to claim 5, characterized in that when the paper sheet holding lever is lowered, a portion of the paper sheet holding lever interferes with the discharge/conveyance path.
7. The paper sheet discharge/accumulation device according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that it is configured to prevent a part of the paper sheet from falling between the inner edges of the opening of the paper sheet holding lever and the outer surfaces of the central flange.
8. The paper discharge/accumulation device according to claim 1, characterized in that the discharge tray comprises a base surface, inclined protrusions each protruding forward from both widthwise ends of the base surface and having an upwardly inclined surface on its upper surface, a retractable member whose rear portion is pivotally supported in a groove or hole provided on the inner edge of each of the inclined protrusions, thereby allowing the front portion to rotate in the vertical direction, and an elastic member that biases the retractable member to a protruding position upward.
9. A paper feed slot,
   an introduction section that receives and conveys the paper sheets inserted from the insertion opening along the longitudinal direction of the paper sheets;
   a return unit that receives and stores the paper sheets and discharges the stored paper sheets to the outside;
   The paper sheet discharge/stacking device according to claim 1 ;
   Equipped with
   The recirculation unit is characterized in that it is equipped with a recirculation drum that accumulates and stores paper sheets one by one on its outer surface by rotating in the normal direction, and dispenses paper sheets one by one from the outer surface by rotating in the reverse direction.
   

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