Abstract:
A redemption ticket dispenser is disclosed having a ticket path defined by a series of interchangeable rollers to accommodate different width tickets, the dispenser having a pair of pinch rollers disposed at the mouth of the dispenser to pull tickets through the dispenser and out of an arcade game. The pinch rollers are mounted on a pivoting arm that is held in place by a removable tensioning member. With the tensioning member removed, the pivoting arm can be rotated out of the ticket path to allow ticket jams to be cleared without removing the dispenser from its housing.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to ticket dispensing mechanisms, and more particularly to a high speed ticket dispenser for use in arcade type games and the like. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Ticket dispensers are used in many fields including transportation, entertainment, sports, and particularly in the field of arcade games. Arcade games award players redemption tickets based on performance or luck in various games designed to distribute such tickets, which are then redeemed for prizes offered at the arcade. 
         [0003]    In a typical redemption-type arcade game, a ticket dispenser is positioned at a front panel or in a game unit, where players have easy access to dispensed tickets. Generally, a supply such as a roll or fanfold of tickets is stored in a supply cache or compartment near the ticket dispenser within a game unit. The operator of the game can replace tickets when the supply is exhausted. The tickets are routed from the supply, through the ticket dispenser, and to a front opening or slot in the game unit through which the tickets are dispensed. The ticket dispenser may include one or more motor-driven rollers which can move the strip of tickets to and through the slot. 
         [0004]    Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate, by way of example, the features of the invention 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0005]      FIG. 1  is side view of the ticket dispenser of the present invention; 
           [0006]      FIG. 2  is a side view of the ticket dispenser with the pinch roller pivoted out of the way to clear a ticket jam; 
           [0007]      FIG. 3  is a front view of the ticket dispenser of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0008]      FIG. 4  is an enlarged view of the rollers of the present invention showing interchangeability; and 
           [0009]      FIG. 5  is an elevated perspective view of the ticket dispenser of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0010]    The ticket dispenser  10  of the present invention is generally shown in  FIGS. 1 and 5  depicting a vertical mounting plate  20  adapted to secure the ticket dispenser  10  to a door or wall of an arcade game cabinet. The vertical mounting plate  20  includes an upper mounting hole  22  for receiving a first fastener, and a lower mounting hole  24  for receiving a second fastener to secure the ticket dispenser in the orientation shown in  FIG. 1 . Extending horizontally from the vertical mounting plate is a support bracket  26  comprised of two sections, a motor support plate  28  and a circuit board support plate  30 . Of course, the two plates can easily be combined into a single plate for purposes of this invention. The circuit board support plate  30  extends out laterally from the motor support plate  28  and includes a circuit board mounting hole for receiving a fastener  31  that affixes the circuit board  32  to the circuit board support plate  30 . At a distal end of the circuit board support plate  30 , a lead roller hole receives a fastener that secures a horizontally disposed lead roller  34 . A pair of ticket guides  36  extend horizontally in a parallel relationship adjacent the lead roller  34  to guide the tickets T into the dispenser. The tickets T are initially received through the ticket guides  36  and positioned in the proper ticket path by a lead roller  34  extending horizontally from said circuit board support plate  30 . The lead roller  34  is exchangeable in that other rollers  34 a (see  FIG. 4 ) having a greater or lesser width which can be used for different width tickets. 
         [0011]    The circuit board plate  30  mounts the circuit board  32  used to count the tickets T as they are dispensed by the machine. The circuit board  32  may be of the type manufactured by Xiamen Product Development Company Ltd. of Xiamen, China (PN0152487), and includes an optical sensor  40  positioned at the lower edge of the board to detect the tickets as they pass by the circuit board  32 . The optical sensor is positioned just aft of the lead roller  34  between the lead roller  34  and a secondary roller  42  in the path of the ticket travel. As the ticket T passes by, the optical sensor  40  reads either a notch or a bar code imprinted on the outer edge of the ticket to maintain a count of the tickets being dispensed. The circuit board  32  is coupled by a first electrical cable  46  to the motor M for controlling the motor that drives the ticket dispenser and providing power to the Motor M. The motor can be a twelve volt, 120 rpm DC motor such as those offered by Jye Maw of Taiwan. A second electrical cable  48  connects the circuit board  32  to a main processor (not shown) in the arcade game which signals to the ticket dispenser  10  how many tickets to dispense to the player. 
         [0012]    The motor support plate  28  includes an extension plate  52  extending vertically from an upper edge with a hole for receiving a threaded fastener that mounts a tertiary ticket roller  54 . The tertiary ticket roller  54  is substantially vertically aligned with the secondary ticket roller  42 , such that tickets travel substantially vertically upwards from the secondary ticket roller  42  to the tertiary ticket roller  54 . As with the lead roller, the secondary roller and tertiary roller are replaceable with larger or smaller rollers to accommodate varying size tickets. 
         [0013]    The motor support plate  28  further supports a cylindrical shaft  50  extending orthogonally approximately two inches, where the cylindrical shaft  50  is mounted about one and one half inches above the secondary roller  42 . The cylindrical shaft is journalled on a cylindrical rod  60  that enables the shaft  50  to rotate freely about the rod  60 . A stop at the end of the rod  60  maintains the cylindrical shaft  50  on the rod while allowing enough play to provide free rotation of the shaft about the rod. Mounted on the shaft  50  is an arm  62  that carries a pair of pinch rollers  64  at a distal end, where the pinch rollers  64  are horizontally aligned with the tertiary roller  54 . The lower half  64 b of the pinch roller  64  is mounted in a bracket extending horizontally from the arm  62 , and is journalled within an annular collar  68  on a first side for receiving the axel  70  of the lower half  64 b of the pinch roller  64 , and a plate the receives the axel  70  on the other side. The axel  70  of the lower half  64 b of the pinch roller  64  can include a circumferential recess  74  at an outer edge. Between the plate  28  and the lower half  64 b of the pinch roller  64  is a toothed gear  76  for driving the pinch roller. The lower half of the pinch roller  64  may include a rubber band  78  to increase the friction of the rollers which resist slip as the tickets pass through. The upper half  64   a  of the pinch roller  64  is mounted to a carrier bracket  80  with a collar  82  on a first side for receiving the axel  84  of the upper half  64   a  of the pinch roller  64  and a plate  86  on the opposite side for receiving the axel  84 , where the upper half  64   a  of the pinch roller  64  further carries a toothed gear  88  for engaging the complimentary toothed gear  76  on the lower half of the pinch roller  64  to drive both halves of the pinch rollers in opposite directions to move the tickets therebetween. The carrier bracket  80  is mounted on two vertical threaded fasteners  90  with a nut  92  at the top end. Between the carrier plate  80  and the nuts  92  are coil springs  94  that apply pressure on the upper half  64   a  of the pinch roller  64  so as to force the upper half against the lower half of the roller. By rotating the nuts  92  in either direction, more or less tension can be applied to the upper half  64   a  of the pinch roller to adjust the tension as needed to pull the tickets T through the dispenser. 
         [0014]    Extending from the bottom of the motor support plate  28  is an anchor rod  96 , which is connected at its distal end  98  to a tensioning spring  100 . At the end of the tensioning spring  100  is a ring  102  that fits over the axel  70  of the lower half  64 b of the pinch roller  64  and sits in the circumferential recess  74 . With the tensioning spring  100  connecting the anchor rod  96  to the pinch roller  64 , the pinch roller  64  is fixed in its position shown in  FIG. 3 and 5 . This is the position for normal operation of the ticket dispenser. However, with the ticket dispenser  10  housed inside an arcade game, if a ticket jam occurs the previous art required that the ticket dispenser be removed. In the present embodiment, the ticket jam can be remedied by disconnecting the tensioning spring  100  from the pinch roller  64 , which frees the arm  62  and pinch roller  64  to rotate away from the motor to expose the ticket path. As shown in  FIG. 2 , the rotation of the pinch rollers  64  back away from the front of the ticket dispenser exposes the entire ticket path through the dispenser and allows a maintenance worker to quickly and easily clear any ticket jams without removing the ticket dispenser from the game. Once the ticket path is cleared and the jam removed, the arm can be rotated downward to its original position and the tensioning spring replaced so that the ticket dispenser can resume operation. 
         [0015]    The motor M is mounted to the motor support plate  28  such that a drive shaft  104  passes through the support plate  28  and carries a toothed drive gear  106 . The drive gear  106  is coupled to a smaller follower gear  108  mounted on a support shaft  110  passing through the motor support plate  28 . As the motor M drives the drive shaft  104  and drive gear  106 , the follower gear  108  and support shaft  110  are turned, which in turn drives a second drive gear  112  on the opposite side of the motor support plate  28 . The second drive gear  112  turns the associated gear  76  on the lower half of the pinch rollers  64  positioned to be aligned with the tertiary ticket roller  54 . The cooperating gear  88  on the upper half  64   a  of the pinch roller  64  turns with the lower half&#39;s gear so that both halves  64   a,b  of the pinch rollers  64  turn in opposite directions to “pull” the line of tickets T therebetween. The surface of the pinch rollers may be textured in addition to the frictional band  78  to increase the friction and prevent slippage of the tickets. 
         [0016]    The foregoing description of the ticket dispenser is intended to be illustrative and not limiting, in that those of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize and appreciate that alternative embodiments and substitutions are possible without deviating from the scope of the invention. Therefore, the invention should not be limited in any manner by the foregoing, but rather the scope of the invention is intended to be measured by the appended claims in view of the description above.