Package making – With means responsive to a sensed condition – Of individual contents or group feed or delivery
Reexamination Certificate
2001-08-21
2002-12-24
Smith, Scott A. (Department: 3721)
Package making
With means responsive to a sensed condition
Of individual contents or group feed or delivery
C053S498000, C053S500000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06497085
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a coin wrapping machine and, particularly, to such a machine which can accurately detect whether the number of coins to be wrapped is more than or less than a predetermined number even in the case where new issue coins and past issue circulating coins of the same denomination are wrapped together.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Coin wrapping machines are generally constituted so as to discriminate the genuineness and denominations of deposited coins, count the number of coins of the denomination to be wrapped, feed every predetermined number of coins to a coin stacking section, roll-like stack coins, further feed the roll-like stacked coins to a coin wrapping section, hold the stacked coins by three wrapping rollers, rotate the stacked coins held by the wrapping rollers while being supported by a support rod, wind a wrapping film around the stacked coins so that there remain crimping portions above and below the stacked coins, crimp the crimping portions of the wrapping film above and below the stacked coins by moving a pair of an upper crimp claw and a lower crimp claw disposed spaced apart vertically toward each other, and produce a wrapped coin roll.
Therefore, a predetermined number of stacked coins should always be fed from the coin stacking section to the coin wrapping section. However, the number of the stacked coin fed to the coin wrapping section may sometimes be less than the predetermined number, since some of the stacked coins may sometime drop out when the stacked coins are fed from the coin stacking section to the coin wrapping section, or the number of stacked coins fed to the coin wrapping section may sometimes be more than the predetermined number, since for some reason, some of the coins stacked in the coin stacking section remain in the coin stacking section without feeding to the coin wrapping section, so that the remaining coin or coins are fed to the coin wrapping section together with the coins stacked in the coin stacking section in the next coin wrapping operation cycle.
In such cases, the number of coins becomes more than or less than the predetermined number despite the fact that predetermined number of coins have to be wrapped. Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-64335 therefore discloses a coin wrapping machine constituted to calculate the height of the stacked coins based on the amounts of movement of the pair of upper and lower crimp claws when they are moved toward each other in order to crimp the upper and lower end portions of a wrapping film wound around the coins roll-like stacked and transferred to the coin wrapping section and to compare the calculated height with a reference height of stacked coins of the denomination concerned, thereby detecting whether the number of coins to be wrapped is more than or less than the predetermined number.
Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid Open No. 10-24909 discloses a coin wrapping machine provided with a sensor for detecting coins stacked in the coin stacking section and transferred to the coin wrapping section and constituted to calculate the height of the stacked coins based on the time during which the stacked coins are detected by the sensor and the moving speed of the stacked coins and compare the calculated height with a reference height of stacked coins of the denomination concerned, thereby detecting whether the number of coins to be wrapped is more than or less than the predetermined number.
These coin wrapping machines assume that the height of a predetermined number of stacked coins is constant for each denomination and, so long as this assumption is true, can detect whether the number of coins to be wrapped is more than or less than the predetermined number in a desired manner by calculating the height of the stacked coins and comparing it with a reference height of stacked coins of the denomination.
On the other hand, recently, coins of the same denomination as that of past issue circulating coins but having different magnetic properties, surface pattern or the like from that of the past issue circulating coins have been newly issued for the purpose of preventing counterfeiting and the like of coins. In such a case, the diameter and thickness of the new issue coin are normally determined to be equal to those of the past issue circulating coin but the new issue coin often has a different surface pattern from that of the past issue circulating coin. As a result, when a predetermined number of the new issue coins are stacked, the height thereof is often different from the height of the predetermined number of the stacked past issue circulating coins and, therefore, it is impossible for a coin wrapping machine provided with a conventional coin number discrepancy detecting device to accurately detect whether the number of the stacked coins is more than or less than the predetermined number.
For instance, 500 yen coins have been newly issued in Japan in order to prevent coin counterfeiting. When fifty past issue circulating 500 yen coins are stacked, the height thereof is 92.9 mm, whereas when fifty new issue 500 yen coins are stacked, the height thereof is 91.8 mm. Therefore, they are slightly different and it is impossible for a coin wrapping machine provided with a conventional coin number discrepancy detecting device to accurately detect whether the number of the stacked coins is more than or less than the predetermined number.
In addition, although past issue coins are gradually collected and taken out of circulation, new issue coins and past issue circulating coins are used as genuine coins until all past issue circulating coins have been collected. Therefore, since coins to be wrapped include both new issue coins and past issue circulating coins, it is impossible to determine the height of a predetermined number of stacked new issue coins as a reference height of stacked coins and detect whether the number of the stacked coins is more than or less than the predetermined number.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention is to provide a coin wrapping machine which can accurately detect whether the number of coins to be wrapped is more than or less than a predetermined number even in the case where new issue coins and past issue circulating coins of the same denomination are wrapped together.
The above and other objects of the present invention can be accomplished by a coin wrapping machine comprising a denomination specifying means for specifying a denomination of coins to be wrapped, a discriminating and counting means for discriminating whether or not a coin is acceptable, a denomination of the coin when the coin is acceptable and whether or not the denomination of the coin coincides with that specified by the denomination specifying means and counting coins of the denomination specified by the denomination specifying means, a coin stacking means for stacking coins of the denomination to be wrapped, a reference stacked coin height data storing means for storing reference stacked coin height data for each denomination of coins stacked by the coin stacking means, and a coin number discrepancy detecting means including a comparing means for comparing a height of stacked coins and the reference stacked coin height data for each denomination stored in the reference stacked coin height data storing means, the discriminating and counting means being made responsive to inclusion in coins of the denomination specified by the denomination specifying means of new issue coins and past issue circulating coins for discriminating whether each coin is a new issue coin or a past issue circulating coin, and the coin number discrepancy detecting device being made responsive to inclusion in the coins of the denomination specified by the denomination specifying means of new issue coins and past issue circulating coins for causing the comparing means thereof to select the reference stacked coin height to be compared with the height of coins stacked by the coin stacking means in accordance with the number of the ne
Fukumoto Isao
Tsuruda Mitsumasa
Wang Minguo
Cohen & Pontani, Lieberman & Pavane
Laurel Precision Machines Co., Ltd.
Nathaniel Chukwurah
Smith Scott A.
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