Sheet feeding or delivering – Delivering – To receiver for pack of sheets
Reexamination Certificate
2002-12-04
2004-12-07
Mackey, Patrick (Department: 3651)
Sheet feeding or delivering
Delivering
To receiver for pack of sheets
C271S220000, C271S219000, C271S217000, C271S213000, C271S258010, C271S262000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06827347
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to paper sheet containers arranged in the interior of automatic vending machines, money changing machines and games machines and in particular relates to a paper sheet container having detection means for detecting when the device is full of paper sheets.
BACKGROUND ART
In the interior of machines of various types such as automatic vending machines, money changing machines and games machines, there is typically provided a paper money container that accommodates paper money that has been inserted from a paper money insertion port in a stacker constituting a paper money accommodation section after payment adjustment.
A conventional paper money container as shown in
FIG. 7
, which is a schematic cross-sectional view of the main part thereof, comprises paper money guiding unit
43
wherein paper money
31
fed into a paper money container
41
is pressed into a stacker
42
by means of a pressing plate
43
a
and a motor
44
that drives the paper money guiding device
43
.
Of these, the paper money guiding unit
43
is arranged at the end of the paper money feed path and link
47
comprising a pantograph arm is pivoted on a pressing plate
43
a
thereof. Furthermore, an eccentric cam
46
is mounted on the rotary shaft of the motor
44
so that when the motor
44
is driven, the eccentric cam
46
is rotated, driving the link
47
and thereby moving the pressing plate
43
a
of the paper feed guiding unit
43
in parallel fashion towards the stacker
42
.
The pressing plate
43
a
is constantly biased towards the eccentric cam
46
by biasing means, not shown, with the result that when the motor
44
is driven, the pressing plate
43
a
executes reciprocating motion as shown by an arrow W.
With such a conventional paper money container
41
, when the paper money
31
inserted from the paper money insertion port, not shown, is fed along the paper money feed path and arrives at the end thereof, the paper money
31
is arranged on the right-hand side of the pressing plate
43
a
and both edges thereof are respectively fitted and inserted into paper money guides
48
. When the motor
44
is then driven, as shown in
FIG. 7
, the pressing plate
43
a
of the paper money guiding unit
43
is moved in parallel fashion towards the stacker
42
causing approximately the middle in the width direction of the paper money
31
to be pressed so that the paper money
31
is guided towards the stacker
42
. When both edges of the paper money
31
escape from the paper money guides
48
, the paper money
31
is accommodated in the stacker
42
.
After the paper money
31
has been accommodated in the stacker
42
, the pressing plate
43
a
returns to the initial position by being driven in parallel fashion towards the eccentric cam
46
by the motor
44
.
Details of the paper money accommodating action of the paper money guiding unit
43
are disclosed in Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 60-77287. The reference symbol
49
is a spring that constantly biases the paper money
31
arranged in the stacker
42
towards the pressing plate with the aid of a plate
50
.
The current value in the motor
44
that performs the paper money accommodating action changes with time due to the characteristics of the motor
44
itself and the load of the paper money accommodating action.
FIG. 8
is a time chart showing the operating condition of the motor
44
in the paper money accommodating action and the control unit, etc. (to be described later) in the paper money container
41
, showing in particular the changes of a detection signal stored in the control unit, a CARRY signal that indicates the paper money accommodation action by the paper money guiding unit
43
and the current value that is applied to the motor
44
.
The horizontal axis towards the right-hand side of the drawing in
FIG. 8
indicates the time axis, in which a passage of time is indicated as it moves along the time axis to the right-hand side in the drawing. In the current waveform of the motor
44
, the vertical axis represents the magnitude of the current value.
With this conventional paper money container
41
(FIG.
7
), when the paper money
31
reaches the end of the paper money feed path, the motor
44
is started and the paper money accommodating action is commenced by the pressing plate
43
a
as described above. At this point, a considerable load due to factors such as the inertial force due to the rotor acts on the motor
44
immediately after start-up. As a result, this current value rises abruptly after start-up of the motor
44
, as shown by a peak A of the current waveform of the motor
44
shown in FIG.
8
.
Also, after the peak A, the current first drops as the motor
44
is shifting to steady operation. However, on the other hand, the current value of the motor
44
again rises as shown by the peak B of the current waveform of the motor
44
of
FIG. 8
, since the paper money
31
is pressed into the stacker
42
with the aid of the pressing plate
43
a
and load for causing the paper money
31
to escape from the paper guides
48
(
FIG. 7
) is applied to the motor
44
.
When the paper money
31
escapes from the paper money guides
48
(
FIG. 7
) and is accommodated in the stacker
42
, the pressing plate
43
a
returns to the initial position and at this point load for enabling the paper money
31
to escape from the paper money guides
48
is no longer applied to the motor
44
. The current value of the motor
44
therefore drops as shown by the current waveform of the motor
44
after the peak B of FIG.
8
.
It should be noted that the peak B of
FIG. 8
indicates the current value of the motor
44
immediately prior to the escape of the paper money
31
from the paper money guides
48
(FIG.
7
).
If now the stacker
42
(
FIG. 7
) accommodating the paper money
31
is not full, the pressing force by which the spring
49
presses the pressing plate
43
a
through the paper money
31
stacked and accommodated in the stacker
42
is small, so the load of the spring
49
applied to the motor
44
through the pressing plate
43
a
is small. Consequently, the current applied to the motor
44
drops as shown by the current waveform after the peak B of FIG.
8
.
On the other hand, if the stacker
42
(
FIG. 7
) of
FIG. 1
is full, the pressing force by which the spring
49
presses the pressing plate
43
a
through the paper money
31
stacked and accommodated in the stacker
42
is large, with the result that a large load is again applied through the pressing plate
43
a
to the motor
44
. Accordingly, when the current waveform of the motor
44
after the peak B of
FIG. 8
is observed, it is found that the current value of the motor
44
rises abruptly as shown by the peak C of
FIG. 9
in which portions that are identical with
FIG. 8
are indicated by the same reference symbols.
The pressing plate
43
a
returns to the initial position after being pressed by the accommodated paper money, during which the load for making the paper money
31
escape from the paper money guides
48
is no longer applied to the motor
44
. Thus, the current value of the motor
44
after the peak C of
FIG. 9
drops as shown by the current waveform.
It should be noted that the peak C of
FIG. 9
indicates the current value of the motor
44
immediately before the pressing plate
43
a
presses and accommodates the paper money
31
in the full stacker
42
.
Whether the stacker
42
is full or not is arranged to be detected in the conventional paper money container
41
by utilizing this fluctuation of the current value of the motor
44
in the paper money accommodating action.
This full-state detecting unit that detects the full-state of the stacker
42
comprises current detection unit that detects the current value of the motor
44
, control unit that determines in accordance with the detected current value of the motor
44
whether the stacker is full or not and paper money accommodating action detection unit that detects the commencement of the paper money accommodating action of the
Ito Yukio
Iwai Tadahiro
Kikuchi Tetsuro
Sakamoto Yuichi
Kabushiki Kaisha Nippon Conlux
Mackey Patrick
Welsh & Katz Ltd.
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