Abstract:
A device and method cuts paper from a supply such as a paper roll into predetermined lengths, and supplies these cut tickets or cards to a ticket processing device. The device includes a paper supply holder, a paper guide, a paper feeder, and a paper cutter. The device can be attached to a conventional ticket processing device.

Description:
PRIORITY  
       [0001]    This application claims priority to the provisional U.S. patent application entitled, AUTOMATIC PAPER CUTTER FOR TICKET MACHINES, filed Apr. 17, 2002, having a serial No.  60 / 372 , 801 , the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention relates generally to processing a paper roll into a ticket or card for a ticket machine. More particularly, the present invention relates to a device for automatically feeding and cutting a paper roll into preprocessed tickets or cards for a ticket processing device.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    Automatic ticket preparation systems are typically utilized, for example, on modern mass transit systems. These systems often provide their riders with a variety of options with respect to the type of ticket to be purchased by the rider. Tickets have typically been printed and encoded from preprocessed cards which have a heat sensitive coating (to respond to a thermal dot matrix printer) and a linear strip of magnetic sensitive material (capable of responding to a magnetic field to become magnetically encoded).  
           [0004]    The use of preprocessed cards has been made more practical by the provision of a cartridge for the cards. The cards are commonly stacked in the cartridge and sealed at a remote facility. The sealed cartridge is transported to the ticket processing device in which it is to be used. Thus the cards are handled in fixed groups, rather than in bulk, minimizing the likelihood of theft of the cards for the purpose of producing forged tickets. After the cartridge is placed in the ticket processing device, the ticket processing device removes the cards one at a time in sequence from the cartridge for the purpose of originating a ticket.  
           [0005]    An operator may be provided with a control keyboard and a display located on the ticket processing device. The supporting electronics of the ticket processing device permit the operator to print and encode tickets for values equal to, for example, certain dollar values, multiple rides, a single ride, or a ride and a transfer.  
           [0006]    This manner of providing preprocessed cards to the ticket processing device is limited by the amount of preprocessed tickets that are available within the sealed cartridge. Further, the entire cartridge must be changed when empty. In addition, a large effort may be needed to obtain the preprocessed tickets, properly package them in a cartridge, and deliver them to the ticket processing device.  
           [0007]    A need exists, therefore, for providing the automated generation and delivery of a large supply of tickets directly to a ticket processing device. A need further exists for a technology to provide protection against forged tickets while generating the tickets. Finally, a need exists to directly supply tickets to currently deployed ticket processing devices already in use.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0008]    It is therefore a feature and advantage of the present invention to provide the automated generation and delivery of a large supply of tickets directly to a ticket processing device.  
           [0009]    It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide protection against forged tickets while generating the tickets.  
           [0010]    It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to directly supply tickets to currently deployed ticket processing devices already in use.  
           [0011]    The above and other features and advantages are achieved through the use of a novel apparatus and method as herein disclosed. In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, an automatic paper cutter device is provided for feeding cut lengths of paper from a paper roll to a ticket processing device. The automatic paper cutter device includes a paper roll frame assembly having a paper roll support and a paper feed guide assembly. The device also provides a pair of pinch rollers, and a paper cutter device.  
           [0012]    In another aspect of the invention, an automatic paper cutter system is provided for feeding cut lengths of paper for a paper roll to a ticket processing device. The system includes a means for supporting the paper roll and a means for advancing the paper from the paper roll. Additionally, the system may also include a means for guiding the advancing paper from the paper roll and a means for cutting the advancing paper.  
           [0013]    In another aspect of the invention a method of preprocessing tickets or cards is provided including feeding paper from a paper source and guiding the paper to a cutter. The method also provides cutting the paper into predetermined lengths.  
           [0014]    There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described below and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.  
           [0015]    In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein, as well as the abstract, are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.  
           [0016]    As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0017]    [0017]FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating a paper roll frame assembly connected to a ticket receipt issue machine (TRIM) assembly according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the TRIM frame subassembly.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 3 is a side view of the paper roll frame assembly.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line  4 - 4  of FIG. 3.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line  5 - 5  of FIG. 3.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 6 is a side layout view of the paper roll frame assembly connected to the TRIM assembly.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating alternative embodiment of a paper roll frame assembly.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 8 is a view of the components shown in the paper roll fram assembly of FIG. 7. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0025]    The present invention provides an automatic paper cutter which can be connected to ticket processing device such as, for example, a device known as a ticket receipt issue machine (TRIM). A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawing figures, in which like reference numbers refer to like elements throughout. Referring to FIG. 1, an automatic paper cutter assembly  10  includes a paper roll frame assembly  12  which may be utilized to perform a variety of functions as will be further described herein. The paper roll frame assembly  12  is further designed to connect with the TRIM  16  in order to provide preprocessed tickets or cards directly to the TRIM  16 .  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 2 illustrates additional components of the TRIM  16  which has a TRIM frame subassembly  18 . The TRIM  16  rests via platform  20  of the TRIM frame subassembly  18  which provides stability to the TRIM subassembly structure. The TRIM frame subassembly  18  may incorporate attachment edges  22  to provide the structure to which the paper roll frame assembly  12  is connected.  
         [0027]    A right printer side plate  24  and a left printer side plate  26  may be incorporated into the TRIM frame subassembly  18 . The right printer side plate  24  and the left printer side plate  26  can be utilized to support and retain printers used to print or encode information onto the already-cut tickets as they pass through the TRIM assembly  16 . The TRIM frame subassembly  18  is further capable of supporting additional components used to process tickets or cards. These may include, for example, pinch rollers for advancing tickets or cards, and/or magnetic heads for encoding and decoding information onto tickets or cards.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 3 provides a more detailed view of the paper roll frame assembly  12  and its various components in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The paper roll frame assembly  12  includes a support area  27  to retain the paper roll  28 . The support area  27  preferably is configured with a U-shaped saddle in order to support a shaft  29  that supports the paper roll  28 . The paper roll  28  may be a roll of thermally coated paper suitable for further processing such as by a printer containing a thermal unit located within the TRIM assembly  16 .  
         [0029]    In order to connect the paper roll frame assembly  12  to the TRIM assembly  16 , attachment holes  30  may be provided to receive a retaining means. Such a retaining means may include, for example, a screw and nut assembly  31  along an attachment edge portion  29  of the paper roll frame assembly  12 , as seen in FIG. 6. The attachment holes  30  of the paper roll frame assembly  12  can be aligned with corresponding holes  33  formed in the attachment edge  22  of the TRIM frame subassembly  18 . The retaining means  31  can then be utilized to secure the paper roll frame assembly  12  to the attachment edge  22  of the TRIM frame subassembly  18 , as seen in FIG. 6.  
         [0030]    Another function of the paper roll frame assembly  12  may include providing a support structure to which additional paper processing components may be attached. As shown in FIG. 4, such additional components may be secured directly to the paper roll frame assembly  12 . These components may include an idler take-up device  32 , a rotary cutter device  34 , ticket pinch rollers  36 , a paper feed guide assembly  38 , and an optical sensor device  40 . The rotary cutter device  34 , for example, may be connected to the paper roll frame assembly  12  and secured thereto via a securing means such as a screw and washer assembly.  
         [0031]    In a preferred configuration, the paper roll  28  is spooled toward the rotary cutter device  34  along a pathway through a paper feed guide assembly  38 . The paper feed guide assembly  38  acts to provide a slight tension to the paper as it is spooled off the paper roll. In addition, the paper feed guide  38  directs the paper along a travel path towards the rotary cutter device  34 . Part of the paper feed guide assembly  38  may include a curved guide plate  39  preferably designed in a generally C-shaped configuration. This design allows for the varying angle of the paper feed as it is spooled from the paper roll  28 , and provides a small frictional resistance with the moving paper against the take-up feeding force.  
         [0032]    In a preferred embodiment of the invention, an optical sensor device  40  is placed along the paper feed pathway to detect whether paper is present for feeding into the rotary cutter device  34 . Pinch rollers  36  assist in transferring the paper feed from the paper roll  28  toward the rotary cutter device  34 . It will be appreciated that the pinch rollers  36  can operate in combination with a belt  50  in connection with the idler take-up device  32  and the various components of the TRIM assembly  16  during the advancement of the paper roll and the cutting procedure performed by the rotary cutter device  34 . The idler take-up device  32  may be secured to the paper roll frame assembly  12 , for example, by a hex screw and nut assembly. The idler take-up device  32  is adjustable in order to adjust the tension of a drive belt  50 .  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view taken along section line  44  of FIG. 3. A right support plate  42  and left support plate  44  act not only to support the paper roll  28  and the rotary cutter  34 , but to serve as support structures to which additional components may be attached. The right support plate  42  and left support plate  44  may be comprised of a material, such as aluminum, which is relatively lightweight, yet also sufficient to provide strength to the overall design of the plate structure. A spacer  47  may be provided for additional support to the overall structure of the paper roll frame assembly  12 . The belt tensioner  46  extends from the idler take up device  32  and is utilized during the operation of spooling the paper from the paper roll  28  as further described below.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 5 shows an additional cross-sectional view taken along line  5 - 5  of FIG. 3. A tooth pulley  48  extends from the ticket pinch rollers  36  and is also utilized for spooling the paper from the paper roll  28 .  
         [0035]    Returning to FIG. 4, the paper roll frame assembly  12  is connected to the TRIM assembly  16 . This configuration demonstrates how the now-cut tickets or cards can be produced and directly supplied to the TRIM assembly  16 . Preferably the TRIM assembly receives these cards in condition similar to preprocessed cards from a cartridge. Thus, the TRIM assembly  16  can be retrofit for operation from a cartridge system to an automatic paper cutter assembly  10 . As shown, the paper roll frame assembly  12  is preferably attached along the attachment edge  22 . A drive belt  50  runs over pinch rollers  52 , the belt tensioner  46  of the idler take-up device  32  and the ticket pinch rollers  36 . The drive belt  50  thus couples the pinch rollers  52  of the TRIM assembly  16  to cooperate with the pinch rollers  36  of the paper roll frame assembly  12  during the advancement of the paper roll  28  and hence advancement of the now-cut tickets.  
         [0036]    In operation, the ticket pinch rollers  36  feed paper down the paper roll  28  along the paper feed guide  38 . The optical sensor device  40  can be utilized to detect the presence of paper fed from the paper roll  28 . The paper is next fed to the rotary cutter device  34  which is used to cut the paper roll  28  at predetermined lengths to form a ticket or card. Once a ticket or card is cut from the paper roll  28 , pinch rollers  52  are used to hold the ticket or card in escrow. The ticket or card can be delivered to the processing area of the TRIM assembly  16  through pinch rollers  56  and  58  for subsequent processing operations. A controller  60  shown schematically in FIG. 4, is preferably utilized to control the driving of the rollers  52 ,  56 ,  58  and the rotary cutter device  34 . The controller  60  can be programmed, for example, to cut tickets of one or more predetermined lengths. FIG. 6 shows that a distance D is present between the optical sensor  40  and the cutting point  54  of the rotary cutter device  34 . In cases where the desired length of the ticket is greater than distance D, then the detection of paper at the optical sensor  40  indicates sufficient paper to form a ticket and this information can be transmitted to the controller  60 .  
         [0037]    [0037]FIG. 7 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the present invention. The alternative embodiment includes a stand alone paper roll frame assembly  62  which is capable of operating as a self-sustained device by advancing paper from a roll, guiding the roll paper, cutting the roll paper for delivery to another device requiring preprocessed tickets or cards provided by the paper roll frame assembly  62 . It can be appreciated that a TRIM  16  may be used in conjunction with the paper roll frame assembly  62 . However, the paper roll frame assembly  62  may not be limited solely to the use of a TRIM  16  device. The paper roll frame assembly  62  may also be utilized with a plurality of other devices requiring preprocessed tickets or cards provided by the paper roll frame assembly  62 .  
         [0038]    The embodiment shown in FIG. 7 is a self contained cutter and paper feed unit which does not require any components from another mechanism, such as a TRIM  16 , in order to fully operate. This is due, in part, to the unique design of the paper roll assembly and the ability to contain the essential components for advancing the paper and cutting it into precut tickets all within a single unit.  
         [0039]    In order to connect the paper roll frame assembly  62  to another device, such as a TRIM assembly  16 , attachment holes  63  may be provided to receive a retaining means. Such a retaining means may include, for example, a screw and nut assembly  31  along an attachment edge portion  65  of the paper roll frame assembly  62 , as seen in FIG. 7. The attachment holes  63  of the paper roll frame assembly  62  can be aligned with corresponding holes formed in the attachment edge of another frame subassembly which would require preprocessed tickets or cards provided by the paper roll frame assembly  62 . The retaining means  31  can be utilized to secure the paper roll frame assembly  62  to an attachment edge of another frame subassembly.  
         [0040]    Another function of the paper roll frame assembly  62  may include providing a support structure to which additional paper processing components may be attached. As shown in FIG. 8, such additional components may be secured directly to the paper roll frame assembly  12 . These components may include a rotary cutter device  114 , ticket drive rollers  76 , ticket drive roller assembly  84 , a ticket guide bracket  72 , a drive motor and gear assembly  94 , optical sensor device  40 , and a ticket feed guide  110 . The rotary cutter device  114 , for example, may be connected to the paper roll frame assembly  62  and secured thereto via a securing means such as a screw and washer assembly  82 .  
         [0041]    In a preferred configuration, the paper roll  28  is spooled toward the rotary cutter device  114  along a pathway through a ticket feed guide  110 . The ticket feed guide  110  acts to provide a slight tension to the paper as it is spooled off the paper roll. In addition, the ticket feed guide  110  directs the paper along a travel path towards the rotary cutter device  114 . Part of the ticket feed guide  110  may include a curved guide plate  111  preferably designed in a generally C-shaped configuration. This design allows for the varying angle of the paper feed as it is spooled from the paper roll  28 , and provides a small frictional resistance with the moving paper against the take-up feeding force.  
         [0042]    In a preferred embodiment of the invention, an optical sensor device  40  is placed along the paper feed pathway to detect whether paper is present for feeding into the rotary cutter device  34 . Ticket drive rollers  76  and the ticket drive roller assembly  84  assist in transferring the paper feed from the paper roll  28  toward the rotary cutter device  114 . It will be appreciated that the ticket drive rollers  76  and the ticket drive roller assembly  84  can operate in combination with a belt  78  in connection with the drive motor  94  during the advancement of the paper roll and the cutting procedure performed by the rotary cutter device  114 .  
         [0043]    Referring, again to FIG. 8., right support plate  64  and left support plate  66  act not only to support the paper roll  28  and the rotary cutter  114 , but to serve as support structures to which additional components may be attached. The right support plate  64  and left support plate  66  may be comprised of a material, such as aluminum, which is relatively lightweight, yet also sufficient to provide strength to the overall design of the plate structure. A spacer  68  may be provided for additional support to the overall structure of the paper roll frame assembly  62 . Groove pulley  92  and idler pulley  104  are coupled to drive shafts  90  and  88 , respectively. An idler post  106  may be further connected to the idler pulley  104 . Drive shafts  88 ,  90  facilitate the operation of the ticket drive rollers  76  during the operation of spooling the paper from the paper roll  28  as further described below.  
         [0044]    In operation, the ticket drive rollers  76  and the ticket drive roller assembly  84  feed paper down the paper roll  28  along the ticket feed guide  110 . The optical sensor device  40  can be utilized to detect the presence of paper fed from the paper roll  28 . The paper is next fed to the rotary cutter device  114  which is used to cut the paper roll  28  at predetermined lengths to form a ticket or card. Once a ticket or card is cut from the paper roll  28 , the ticket drive roller assembly  84  is used to hold the ticket or card in escrow. The ticket or card can be delivered to the processing area of another device requiring preprocessed tickets or cards and possibly for subsequent processing operations. A controller is preferably utilized to control the drive motor and gear assembly  94 , ticket drive rollers  76  and the ticket drive roller assembly  84 . The controller can be programmed, for example, to cut tickets of one or more predetermined lengths.  
         [0045]    It is further appreciated the ticket rollers  76  and the rollers of the ticket drive roller assembly  84 , comprise a one-way clutch assembly to prevent the rollers from spinning back upon themselves. This feature works to maintain tautness in the paper feed. Additionally the roller design includes a capability to detect variances in the tautness of the paper roll feed and to adjust the take-up speed in the rollers in order to prevent the paper roll  28  from spinning or unraveling uncontrollably. This design essentially eliminates the need to provide a braking mechanism coupled to the paper roll to adjust the paper web feed.  
         [0046]    The many features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the detailed specification, and thus, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention which fall within the true spirits and scope of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and variations will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation illustrated and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.