Coin handling – Deliverer – Delivery from plural sources by a single actuation
Patent
1992-12-02
1994-11-01
Bartuska, F. J.
Coin handling
Deliverer
Delivery from plural sources by a single actuation
222547, 453 30, G07D 102, G07D 904
Patent
active
053603699
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to improvements within a currency change machine. Whilst the invention is according to one embodiment directed towards and is primarily described with reference to a bulk payment apparatus for a currency change machine which dispenses coins or tokens, it is anticipated that the invention is suitable for use with other dispensing machines such as for confectionery or other dispensed items.
BACKGROUND
A currency change machine typically comprises an acceptor device, a central processing unit (CPU) and one or more payout hoppers. The accepting device is generally a coin, note or card acceptor, which validates a coin, note or card being inserted into the machine and issues a signal to the CPU which in turn signals the payout hopper to pay out coins or tokens.
Typically payout hoppers are slow in counting out and dispensing the required payout. In existing machines attempts have been made to increase the speed of payouts by increasing the number of payout hoppers within the machines. Besides being costly this also leads to the physical size of the machine being drastically increased. For many applications the size, in particular the horizontal size of a change machine is critical. Generally large change machines are undesirable in their places of intended use.
Additional problems arise as increasing the number of payout hoppers naturally leads to increasing the quantity of coins the accumulated number of hoppers are able to hold in reserve for future payouts. To further increase the hopper capacity vertical extensions of the hopper container have been provided.
The coins are paid out from the bottom of the hopper and the hoppers are filled from the top. Due to this fact, the practically managable distance from the bottom of the hopper to the top of the hopper or extension is limited, as the height at which the coins are paid out to the user must not be too low, and the height at which the hopper is filled must not be too high as service personnel must be able to easily fill the hopper with coins. Whilst for these reasons horizontal as well as vertical extension of the hopper container capacity is preferable, this has not been done as coinage does not transport as would liquid, and if the hopper container is extended horizontally as well as vertically, this may cause "bridging" where coins force themselves into a high compression area, and thus block in that position, due to the weight of the coinage above.
Furthermore, due to the weight of coins, a hopper with a large extension is very difficult to handle if full of coins, should there be a need to remove the hopper for reasons such as emptying the hopper or removing a faulty hopper.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
The fundamental purpose of the present invention is to provide a device to ameliorate the payout performance of currency change machines and vending machines by utilising a bulk dispensing receptacle in combination with a dispensing hopper in order to reduce the period of dispensing times.
In one broad form the present invention comprises a bulk dispensing apparatus for the dispensing of items such as coins, tokens, confectionery and the like from a machine upon receipt of a signal from a control means, said bulk dispensing apparatus comprising:
at least one hopper for the counting out and dispensing of items,
at least one bulk dispensing receptacle adapted to be filled with a predetermined number of items from said hopper, and
an outlet tray at or near said hopper and said bulk dispensing receptacle, wherein in use when said machine is required to dispense a number of items less than the predetermined number of items in said bulk dispensing receptacle, said items are dispensed from said dispense hopper into said outlet tray, and wherein in use when the machine is required to dispense a number of items equal to the predetermined number of items in said bulk dispensing receptacle, said predetermined number of items are dispensed from said bulk dispensing receptacle into said outlet tray, and wherein in use
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Larsson Stig B.
Ryan Ian M.
Bartuska F. J.
Litman Richard C.
Scandic International Pty. Ltd.
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