JPH02230492A - Coin or the like payment device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field]

This invention is a device for money exchange or medal sales that dispenses a predetermined number of coins such as coins and medals based on a command, and in particular, the device connects a dispensing section and a supply section to dispense coins on a supply path. This invention relates to a coin dispensing device that is improved so that coins can be smoothly replenished by eliminating clogging.

[Conventional technology]

The main parts of the conventional example will be explained with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a side view of the main parts of the conventional example, but at the same time, the main parts of an embodiment according to the present invention, which will be described later, are also shown in common. This conventional example has a function of dispensing a predetermined number of coins of a predetermined denomination, such as 100 yen coins, stored for exchange, based on a command. In FIG. 1, this main part mainly consists of a replenishment section 1, a dispensing section 6, and a replenishment path 5 connecting these. The supply section 1 mainly includes a case IA, a conveyor conveyor 2, and a shutter 3. The dispensing unit 6 mainly has a case 6A.
, a dispensing path 7, a dispensing opening 8, a disk 9 having a special shape for both dispensing and leveling, and the dispensing disk 9 is adjusted according to a command.
It consists of a motor 10 that rotates in reverse directions. In addition, 1
1 is a collection path, and 4 is a shutter, each of which is a path for collecting the coins held in the supply section 1 to a collection warehouse (not shown) when the day's currency exchange is completed, and also has a passage opening function for this purpose. It is something that has. Coins are stored in both the supply section 1 and the payout section 6. Each storage capacity (level) is detected by sensors IK and 6K provided in the supply section 1 and the dispensing section 6, respectively.
When the amount stored in the replenishment section 1 becomes less than a predetermined value, the coins are replenished from the supply section 1, and when the amount stored in the replenishment section 1 becomes less than a predetermined value, the coins are supplied from a coin storage (not shown). Incidentally, as the sensors I K and 6 K, optical type sensors consisting of a light emitting side and a light receiving side are often used. Coin replenishment from the replenishing section 1 is performed by moving the shutter 3 from the solid line display position to the broken line display position, that is, opening the shutter 3, and by the operation of the conveyor 2. Note that the shutter 4 is always in the solid line display position, and is switched to the broken line display position only at the time of recovery. The coins conveyed by the conveyor conveyor 2 pass through the supply path 5 and are replenished onto the disk 9 of the payout section 6 in an irregularly stacked manner. In the dispensing section 6, a dispensing operation and a leveling operation can be performed. The dispensing operation is performed by rotating the disk 9 connected to the motor 10 by a predetermined number of rotations (rotation angle) in the forward direction based on a command corresponding to the number of bills to be exchanged. To be precise, the number of dispensed coins is counted by a counting sensor (not shown), and when a predetermined number is reached, the motor 10 is stopped. The payout coins pass through a payout path 7 and are dispensed to a payout port 8. The other leveling operation is performed by the dispensing section 6.
The purpose of this is to average out the coins housed in the case 68 so that they are not biased, or to topple up an upright coin that may occur in extreme cases, and is performed by reverse rotation of the disk 9. Coin replenishment in the conventional example will be explained with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Sensor 6K in step S1
It is determined whether there is a shortage signal E (see FIG. 1), and if there is, the process moves to step S2, and if not, the process moves to step Sl2. In step S2, the motor 10 (hereinafter referred to as M) is started in reverse and leveling of the stored coins begins. This leveling operation is performed for a predetermined time TI. This time TI
is about 1 second. That is, it is determined in step S3 whether the time TI has elapsed, and if it has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S4.
The presence or absence of the shortage signal E is determined again. If it is still present, the process goes to step S5; if it is absent, the process moves to step S12 after M is stopped in step 14. In step S5, M is stopped, and at the same time, the shutter 3 (hereinafter referred to as G) is opened, the conveyor conveyor 2 (hereinafter referred to as C) is activated, and coin replenishment begins. This replenishment operation is carried out within a predetermined time T2, and if the shortage of capacity in the dispensing section 6 is resolved within that time T2, G is immediately closed and C is stopped. Time T2 is about 8 seconds. Step S6, Sll represents this. Time T in step S8
If E still exists after 2 has elapsed, that is, the coin shortage is not resolved, G is closed in step S9, C is stopped, and an alarm is issued in the next step SIO to investigate the cause and recover (not shown). Predetermined emergency measures such as medical treatment are taken. By the way, when E disappears in steps S6 and S8, steps S12 and S13 are taken via step Sll. In step S11, G is closed and C is stopped. In step SI2, the presence or absence of a dispensing command H is determined, and the standby state continues until the dispensing command H is received. When there is a payout command H, a payout process as a subroutine is performed in step 313.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

As explained above, in the conventional technology, if coins get stuck in the supply path 5 while being supplied from the supply section 1 to the dispensing section 6, the stored amount continues to be insufficient even after the time T2 has elapsed.
If the shortage signal E continues to be transmitted, the action in step S10 in FIG. 3 is taken. Moreover, when a coin stands up inside the dispensing section 6, this standing coin becomes a trigger for the coins to continue inside the supply path 5, causing a so-called bridging phenomenon, and the coins in the supply path 5 clogging occurs. It is strongly desired to eliminate the coin jam in the supply path 5 by a simple method to ensure smooth supply. The object of this invention is to solve the problems of the conventional technology, connect the dispensing part and the replenishing part, eliminate the clogging of coins in the replenishment path, and improve the smooth replenishment of coins. The object of the present invention is to provide a coin type dispensing device that has the following features.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to solve this problem, the coin dispensing device according to the present invention includes a dispensing section capable of dispensing from the stored coins and leveling the stored coins, and a supply path connected to the dispensing section. and a replenishment section that is disposed in front of the coins and is capable of replenishing the coins stored in the dispensing section through the supply path to the dispensing section. ; Based on the shortage signal from the sensor, the leveling operation is continued for a predetermined time limit in the dispensing section, and the replenishment operation is continued for another predetermined time limit at the replenishment section. and a control unit for repeating the above steps up to a set number of times.

[For use]

Based on the shortage signal from the sensor, the control unit performs a leveling operation that is continued for a predetermined time limit in the dispensing unit, and a replenishment operation that is continued for another predetermined time limit in the replenishment unit, for a set number of times. Repeated up to a maximum of .

【Example】

Embodiments of the coin dispensing device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the conventional example already described with reference to FIG. Roughly speaking, the operation of this embodiment consists of a short leveling operation and a subsequent replenishment operation, which are repeated a predetermined number of times to eliminate coin jams in the replenishment path and smooth the flow. The idea is to supply coins. Even if the replenishing operation causes coins to stand upright and cause a coin jam in the replenishment channel, the subsequent leveling operation will cause the upright coins to fall over and clear the jam. Of course, if the shortage signal disappears before the predetermined number of times is reached, the payout becomes possible, and if the shortage signal remains even after the predetermined number of times is reached, an alarm is issued and emergency measures are taken. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of this embodiment. It consists of two parts (b). Figure 2(a)
In step S1, the presence or absence of the shortage signal E is determined.
Move to. In step S2, a counter j related to the number of times is initialized. In step S3, the motor M is activated in reverse (leveling operation is started), and this reverse rotation is continued for a limited time Ta in step S4. Note that Ta is approximately 1 second. If time T
If the signal E disappears within a time, the process moves to step S23 via step S24. In step S5, the presence or absence of the signal E is determined again. If E disappears (coin shortage resolved), the process moves to step S23, and if E is still present (coin shortage state), the process moves to step S6. Step S
6, whether or not i=1, that is, M reversal operation (leveling operation)
It is determined whether or not this is the first time, and if it is the first time, M is stopped, conveyor C is started, and shack G is opened in step S7. If C starts and G opens, it is a replenishment operation. After the second time, only M stop and C start are performed in step S15, and G release is not performed. This means that the G opening is continued until the replenishment operation is completed a predetermined number of times for mechanical reasons and to suppress noise during operation, and the G opening and closing are not performed for each replenishment operation. After it is determined in step S8 that the time Tb has elapsed, a C stop is performed in step S9, as shown in FIG. 2(b). Note that the time Tb varies slightly depending on the denomination, but is approximately a little less than 1 second. Returning to FIG. 2(a) again, if the signal E disappears within time Tb, the process moves to step S26 via step S25. In this step S26, C stop and G close are performed.
After that, the process moves to step S21. In FIG. 2(b), the presence or absence of the signal E is determined in step SIO, and if it is absent, the process moves to step S20, and if it is still present, the process moves to step S11.
, S12 performs the above-mentioned leveling operation and replenishment operation in four steps.
It will be repeated as many times as possible. Of course, if the signal E disappears by the time the fourth time is reached, corresponding processing is performed in step S5 and SIO. Note that since the times Ta and Tb are both short, about 1 second, step S24.q in FIG. 2(a). , S2
5 may be omitted and the presence or absence of a signal E similar to SIO may be checked in step S5. If the signal E is still present even after repeating the leveling operation and the replenishment operation four times, step S1 shown in FIG. 2(b) is performed.
In Step 3, G is closed, and in Step S14, an alarm is issued to notify of the abnormal situation. Now, if the signal 1 disappears in steps SL, S5, and SIO, steps S2L and S22 are performed directly after the M stop is performed in step S23, and after the G close is performed in step S20. In step S21, it is determined whether or not there is a payout command (■), and the standby state continues until this is received, and in step S22, a payout process as a subroutine is performed. As explained above, in this embodiment, the coin jam in the supply path 5 is reliably and quickly cleared, and the coin supply is performed smoothly. It is easy to implement because it uses software means instead of relying on the system, and has the advantage that it is easy to find the optimal conditions for clearing the coin jam, such as the optimal values for the times Ta and Tb and the predetermined number of times.

【Effect of the invention】

Therefore, according to the present invention, the leveling operation and replenishment operation are performed in small increments within a set number of times while constantly monitoring the quantitative state of the coins stored in the dispensing section. The jam is reliably and quickly cleared, and coins can be smoothly replenished. Moreover, since clogging is eliminated by software means rather than by structural or mechanical changes, it is easy to implement and to find the optimum conditions. Note that if the shortage of coins continues even after exceeding the set number of times, it is determined that an abnormal situation has occurred, and emergency measures such as investigation of the cause of the stoppage of the device and recovery measures are taken.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side view commonly showing the main parts of the embodiment according to the present invention and the conventional example; FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of this embodiment; FIG. FIG. 3(b) is a flowchart of the latter stage, and FIG. 3 is a flowchart 1 to 1 of the operation of the conventional example. Code explanation 1: Supply section, IK, 6K: Sensor, 2: Conveyor conveyor, 3.4: Shutter, 5: Supply path, 6
: Dispensing part, 7; Dispensing path, 8: Dispensing port, 9: Disc, 10:
motor.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) A dispensing section capable of dispensing from stored coins and leveling the stored coins, and a dispensing section provided in front of this dispensing section via a supply path and passing through the supply path from the stored coins for replenishment. A device comprising a replenishment section capable of replenishing the dispensing section; a sensor for detecting a shortage state of coins stored in the dispensing section; and a sensor for detecting a shortage state of coins stored in the dispensing section; and a control unit that causes the leveling operation to be continued until the limit and the replenishment operation to be continued for another predetermined time in the replenishment unit to be repeated for a set number of times. Coin dispensing device.