Coin validator

Check-actuated control mechanisms – With additional – disparate means preventing fraudulent... – Means preventing use of tethered check

Patent

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Details

194318, G07D 508

Patent

active

054761689

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a method and apparatus for validating or discriminating between coins, tokens or similar articles.


BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Coin-operated apparatus are being increasingly used throughout the world to provide goods and services. Such apparatus includes amusement machines, vending machines for a wide variety of products, gaming machines (such as "poker machines") and payphones.
As a sub-group, vending machines dispensing such varied products as public transport tickets, confectionery, video cassettes and breadsticks are increasingly apparent in developed countries due to the high cost of labour and a demand for twenty-four-hour access to such products.
In addition, public telephones or payphones are becoming more sophisticated. Although there is a trend towards payphones which operate only on a "phone card" or credit card, it is likely that future payphones will be modelled on those currently in use in Italy, in which one may use coins, phone cards or gettoni (telephone tokens).
Although there are in use banknote validators, the problems inherent in "reading" banknotes (particularly mutilated or worn banknotes) coupled with the trend in most countries to replace lower denomination banknotes with coins, means that in all of the abovementioned applications, a coin validator will be required.
To be acceptable in one of the abovementioned applications, a coin validator must quickly and accurately discriminate between coins of different values, between coins of different countries and between genuine coins and bogus coins. Existing coin validators have been unable to discriminate adequately, in some cases, between a low value coin of a foreign country and a higher-value coin of the country in which the validator is located. Particularly in a region such as Europe, coin validators additionally cannot cope with the large number of migratory coins from various European countries.
One example of a prior art coin validator is provided by U.S. Pat. No. A-3,918,565, which discloses coin selection methods and apparatus in which data representative of a coin is compared with data store in a programmable memory.
In U.S. Pat. No. A-3,918,565, a numerical value of a signal produced by interrogating a coin, such as frequency, is compared with acceptable numerical values for genuine coins which are stored in the programmable memory.
Another prior art coin validator is disclosed in AU-B-24242/84, which discloses the use of pulsing coils which induce eddy currents in a coin. Monitoring means is used to monitor the decay of the eddy currents, and a comparison between the output of the monitoring means and stored reference values enable discrimination to take place.
It is considered that the approach of AU-B-24242/84 is unnecessarily complicated, and would not permit an adequately rapid discrimination to take place.


DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention in one embodiment provides a method for validating coin/token including the steps of: located, with a single pulse, pulse information to provide a definition of said coin/token, said or each portion of said back EMF curve being inverted and amplified, and reference definition, to determine whether said coin/token is acceptable or unacceptable, said definition being in the form of a period of time, or a number of system clock counts, which counts represent a period of time, and wherein said period of time or said number relates to the time between a predetermined time, in relation to the de-energisation of said coils, and the intersection of said back EMF with a reference voltage curve.
The invention in another embodiment also provides a method of validating a coin/token, including the steps of: located at the time of energisation; curve, or a curve of the decaying voltage in said coils; de-energisation of said coils and that when the curve intersects a first reference voltage; de-energisation of said coils and that when the curve intersects a second reference voltage; de-energisation of said coils and that when the cur

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patent: 3870137 (1975-03-01), Fougere
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patent: 3998309 (1976-12-01), Mandas et al.
patent: 4254857 (1981-03-01), Levasseur et al.
patent: 4410077 (1983-10-01), Okolischan
patent: 5020653 (1991-06-01), Shimizh

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