COIN VALIDATOR WITH COIN STABLIZER

Abstract: A coin validator (1) includes a coin path. It is desirable that a coin (14), travelling along the coin path, lies against a wall (9) of the coin path where sensor coils are located. In order to achieve this, a rounded mass (12), for example a metal ball, is supported to project into the coin path. In the case of a heavy coin (14), the coin (14) strikes an upper region of the mass (12) causing it to be pushed back out of the coin path. The movement of the mass (12) absorbs the kinetic energy of the coin (16). Then as the coin (16) passes the mass (12), it is deflected by the surface of the mass (12) against the wall (9) of the coin path. In the case of thin light coins, as the mass (12) does not extend fully across the coin path, a thin light coin does not need to move it and can pass through the gap between it and the wall (9). However, if the coin has an undesirable trajectory, it will be deflected by the surface of the mass (12) towards the wall (9).

Description: Coin Validator with Coin Stabilizer Field of Invention The present invention relates to a coin validator. i Background to Invention Coin validators are used in vending machines and the like to test coins and may also determine their values. Such validators often include a coin path comprising a vertical initial portion, a middle portion where input coins roll 0 down a slope and a vertical exit portion. Various forms of sensor are located to sense coins as they roll along the middle portion of the coin path. It has been found that coins travelling along the coin path are prone to wobble and bounce. This is undesirable as it affects the sensor readings. Consequently there is a need for a way of stabilizing a coin "on the fly". s It is an aim of the present invention to solve this problem. Summary of Invention According to the present invention, there is provided a coin validator 0 comprising an coin path, characterised by a rounded mass gravitationally biased to protrude into the path whereby to deflect a coin on the fly in the coin path to lie flat against a wall facing the mass across the coin path. Preferably, the validator includes support means to support the mass arranged } such that the gravitationally induced bias force increases non-linearly as the mass is moved out of the coin path. Thus, relatively light coins would be able to move the mass, without excessive movement thereof being caused by larger coins. 0 Preferably, the support means comprises a member defining a sloping path up which the mass can be displaced by a passing coin. The sloping path may be progressively steeper for increasing displacement of the mass out of the coin path thereby causing the gravitationally induced bias force to increase non- linearly as the mass is moved out of the coin path. The support means may comprise a cup extending outwardly from a wall of the coin path. The cup may be defined by an open frame. Another embodiment of the support means comprises a pair of converging rails. Preferably, the mass is press-fitted through a wall of the coin path to be received by the support means. Conveniently, the mass comprises a ball. However, alternative shapes could be used such a cylinder. Preferably, the mass is free to roll. Advantageously, the wall opposite the mass is tilted away from a wall through which the mass protrudes. The term "coin" as used herein includes disc-like tokens, as used in vending, gambling and games machines. Brief Description of Drawings Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows the general form of a first coin validator according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a simplified sectional view through AA of the validator of Figure l; Figure 3a is a partial sectional view through BB of the validator of Figure 1; Figure 3b a partial top view of the validator of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a sectional view through CC in Figure 3b; Figure 5a is a side sectional view of an alternative ball retaining structure according to the present invention; Figure 5b is a top sectional view of the structure of Figure 5a; Figure 6 is a side view of a second validator according to the present invention; Figure 7 is a partial sectional view of the coin validator of Figure 6 from the other side; and J Figure 8 shows the coin entry slot and surrounding bezel of the validator of Figure 6. Description of Preferred Embodiments Referring to Figure 1, a validator 1 has a generally rectangular body. A coin 0 entry opening 2 is provided to one end of the top face of the validator 1. Coin accept and reject openings (not shown) are provided in the bottom face of the validator 1. A hinged reject gate 3 forms the upper part of one side face of the validator 1. s The lower part of this face forms a reject cover 4. The coin accept/reject mechanism is mounted to the reject cover 4. A sloping rundown 5 (see Figure 2) formed on the reject cover 3 extends from an end wall 6 below the coin entry opening 2 about half way to the opposite 0 end wall of the validator 1. Various sensors 8 (see Figure 3 a) are mounted on the side wall 9 (see Figure 3 a) of the validator 1 opposite the reject gate 3 where they will be passed by coins on the rundown 5. A hole 10 is formed through the reject gate 3 at a position between the coin S entry opening 2 and the rundown 5. A skeleton cup 11 is mounted over the hole 10 and retains a steel ball 12. The ball 12 is gravitationally biased so that it protrudes into the coin path through the hole 10. Referring specifically to Figure 2, the position of the ball 12 relative to the 0 coin entry opening 2 and the rundown 5 is shown by the dashed circle. A coin 14 is illustrated on the rundown 5. Referring to Figures 3a and 3b, the cup 11 comprises an upper horizontal U- shaped member 11a, the legs of which are joined at their ends to the reject gate 3, and a arcuate leg lib extending from the middle of the U-shaped member lib to a point on the reject cover 3 immediately below the hole 10. J The ball 12 is retained within the cup 11 but is free to move towards and away from the coin path. The arcuate form of the leg lib means that progressively more force is required tβ displace the ball 12 further out of the coin path. o Referring additionally to Figure 4, the rim 13 around the hole 10 is bevelled to allow maximum protrusion of the ball 12 into the coin path commensurate with it being retained within the cup 11. The ball 12 is inserted into the cup 11 by pressing it through the hole 10 from the coin path side. This is possible as the rim 13 is able to deform. Once the ball 12 has been inserted the lip 13 s returns to its initial configuration and the ball 12 is retained. The operation of the embodiment of Figures 1, 2, 3a, 3b and 4 will now be described for a relatively large coin, for instance a UK fifty pence piece. The coin 14 enters the coin path through the coin entry opening 2 in the direction 0 of Arrow A in Figure 3a and falls towards the rundown 5. The coin 14 strikes an upper region of the ball 12 causing it to be pushed back out of the coin path in the direction indicated by Arrow B in Figure 3a (this may involve the coin bouncing on the ball a few times). The movement of the ball 12 absorbs the kinetic energy of the coin 16. Then as the coin 16 passes S the ball 12, it is defleαed by the surface of the ball 12 against the wall 9 of the coin path. The wall 9 is tilted at approximately 5° to the vertical and, consequently, once the coin 16 is lying against the wall 9, it is retained in contact therewith by gravity. 0 The case for thin light coins, e.g. the UK five pence coin, will now be described. As the ball 12 does not extend fully across the coin path, a thin light coin does not need to move the ball 12 and can pass though the gap between the ball 12 and the wall 9. However, if the coin has an undesirable trajectory, e.g. too near the rejeα cover 3, it will be defleαed by the surface of the ball 12 towards the wall 9. s Referring to Figure 5, a trapezium is formed by a pair of arms 17 extending outwardly from either side of a lower portion of the hole 10, a cross-piece 15 which joins the outer ends of the arms 17 where they are closest together and the rejeα gate 3. The ball 12 rests on the inner, upper edges of the arms 17. Thus, when the ball 12 is displaced by a passing coin, it is caused to ride up as o the distance between its points of contaα with the arms 17 decreases. In order to stop the ball 12 becoming free, a knob 16 is provided on the cross- piece 15. The knob 16 is dimensioned such that the gap between it and the top of the hole 10 is less than the diameter of the ball 12. s This embodiment operates in substantially the same manner as that described above although the displacement force for the ball is a substantially linear funαion, due to the linear arrangement of the arms 17. The displacement force required can if required be made non-linear by arranging for the arms 17 to curve towards each other. 0 A further embodiment of the present invention, in which coins enter the validator substantially horizontally, will now be described with reference to Figure 6 to 8. S A validator comprises a validator body 20 which is removably attached to a face plate 21. A coin entry slot 22 is provided in an insert 23, received in an aperture in the face plate 21. An upper portion of a side wall of the validator body 20 comprises a rejeα gate 24. A first coin rundown is defined between the rejeα gate 24 and the opposite wall 25 of the validator body 20. The 0 floor of the run down is provided by a ledge 25 on the rejeα gate 24 which slopes down from a point below the coin entry slot 22. The rejeα gate 24 and the opposite wall 25 have portions 24a,25a which extend upwardly in a region adjacent the coin entry slot 22 to define a space for receiving entering coins 27. s An upwardly inclined cylindrical cup 28 is provided on the rejeα gate 24. The cup 28 is located across the root of the upwardly extending portion 24a of the rejeα gate 24 and retains a ball-29 which protrudes towards the opposite wall 25 almost fully across the width of the rundown. The cup 28 is positioned such that part of a quadrant of the ball 29 is just visible through o the coin slot 22 (see Figure 8). The operation of the stabilizer of the present embodiment will now be described. s When a small coin, for example a United Kingdom 5 pence piece, is inserted through the coin entry slot 22, it contaαs the ball 29 with its edge and drops towards the ledge 26 between the ball 29 and the front plate 21. Once the coin contaαs the ledge 25 is begins to roll down in. As the coin begins to roll, the ball 29 guides it to lie flat against opposite wall 25 of the rundown, 0 without being moved itself. On the other hand, when a large coin, for example a United Kingdom 50 pence piece, is inserted, it contaαs the ball 29 with its edge and forces it to move out of its path into the cup 28, which allows it to drop towards the S ledge 26. However, the gravitational bias aαing on the ball 29 ensures that it is only moved by an amount sufficient to allow the coin to pass. Consequently, the coin is guided to lie flat against the wall 25 of the rundown opposite the ball 29. 0 Intermediately sized coins will be guided towards the wall 25, opposite the ball 29, by the ball's surface as they fall towards the ledge 26. Then if the space available between the ball 29 and the opposite wall 25 is insufficient to allow the coin to pass, the coin will force the ball 29 back into the cup 28 by the amount necessary to allow it to pass. Thus, it can be seen that the stabilizer according to the present embodiment j ensures that both large and small coins proceed along the run down, lying flat against a wall thereof. The present invention has been described with reference to validators having a sloping rundowns. However, the present invention can be usefully applied to 0 other forms of validators. A plurality of the stabilizing structures of the present invention can be employed in a single validator if a plurality of spaced sensors are present and, particularly, if the wall of the coin path does not slope to retain coins in the correα position. A plurality of the stabilizing struαures may also be found advantageous where a coin to be tested passes s sensors in a vertical coin path. Three embodiments of supports for a stabilizing ball have been described. However, alternatives may be desirable in some cases. For instance, the cup of the first embodiment can have a solid wall, the skeleton structure being 0 convenient if the rejeα gate and cup are to be moulded as a single unit. In addition to being moulded in one piece with the rejeα gate, the cup or other support means may be formed separately and attached to the rejeα gate by many different techniques including gluing, welding and using fasteners S such a screws. The ability to press-fit the ball is not essential and the ball or other mass may be placed in its support by other means. For instance, the hole could be sufficient to allow the ball to pass and a retainer attached at the coin path side 0 of the hole after insertion of the ball. If the support means is formed separately from the rejeα gate, the mass may be placed in the support before it is attached to the validator. The ball may be made from any convenient dense material, e.g. stainless steel, glass or ceramic material. The ball may be solid or hollow to obtain the necessary weight ratio. A large ball can reach across a larger coin path but may be too heavy unless it is hollow. It will be seen that in the described embodiments, the ball is rotatable, and the contaα of coins entering the validator may produce rotation of the ball. The ball may not be spherical, but can be of some other shape e.g. elliptical. Masses other than balls may be used, for example a generally cylindrical roller, in which case it may be advantageous to taper or dome its ends to minimize the risk of it becoming stuck in a position so as to occlude the coin path. It is to be noted that, in the embodiments described, the mass is biased solely gravitationally without the aid of a spring, although a spring may additionally be used. The spring may provide a light bias to augment the gravitational bias.

Claims: Claims 1. A coin validator comprising an coin path, characterised by a rounded mass (12) gravitationally biased to protrude into the path whereby to defleα a j coin (14) on the fly in the coin path to lie flat against a wall (9) facing the mass across the coin path. 2. A validator according to claim 1 wherein the gravitationally induced bias force increases substantially linearly as the mass is moved out of the coin o path. 3. A validator according to claim 1, comprising support means (11; 17) to support the mass, arranged such that the gravitationally induced bias force increases non-linearly as the mass is moved out of the coin path. s 4. A validator according to claim 3, including support means comprising a member (lib; 17) defining a sloping path up which the mass can be displaced by a passing coin. 0 5. A validator according to claim 4, wherein the sloping path is progressively steeper for increasing displacement of the mass out of the coin path. 6. A validator according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the support means S comprises a cup extending outwardly from a wall of the coin path. 7. A validator according to claim 6, wherein the cup is defined by an open frame (11a, lib). 0 8. A validator according to claim 3, 4 or 5, wherein the support means comprises a pair of converging rails (17). 9. A validator according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the mass is press-fitted through a wall (3) of the coin path to be received by the support means. s 10. A validator according to any preceding claim, wherein the mass comprises a ball. 11. A validator according to any preceding claim 1, wherein said wall is tilted away from the mass. 0 12. A coin entry path for coin handling apparatus, characterised by a rounded mass gravitationally biased to protrude into the path whereby to defleα a coin on the fly in the coin path to lie flat against a wall facing the mass across the coin path. S 13. A method of stabilizing a coin entering coin handling apparatus, comprising causing the coin to enter a path into which protrudes a mass with a rounded periphery which is biased to protrude into the path, such that the coin is defleαed by the mass to lie flat against a side wall of the path that is 0 opposite the mass.

Inventors: BELL MICHAEL, WOOD DENNIS, BELL, MICHAEL, WOOD, DENNIS
Applicants: BELL MICHAEL, COIN CONTROLS, WOOD DENNIS, BELL, MICHAEL, COIN CONTROLS LTD., WOOD, DENNIS
Application year: 1995
Main classification: G07F3
IPC codes: G07D3, G07F1