Abstract:
A self-service change redemption machine ( 10 ) has a coin hopper area ( 41 ) for receiving batches of mixed coinage and a powered mechanism ( 43 ) for transporting them to an intake opening ( 44 ) into the machine ( 10 ) for sorting, counting and directing coins into a plurality of coin receptacles. The transport mechanism has a pivotable cover ( 46, 46   a ) for preventing access to a portion of the feed path leading into the machine ( 10 ) and, if the cover ( 46, 46   a ) is lifted, the powered mechanism ( 43 ) will be stopped. The mechanism ( 43, 46 ) is designed to prevent jamming of the coins in the hopper area ( 41 ) or along the feed path ( 45 ).

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
   The present invention relates to self-service cash redemption machines and a method in which a substantial batch of unsorted coinage is fed in bulk into the machine and is processed while providing the user with a voucher or a form of credit. 
   DESCRIPTION OF THE BACKGROUND ART 
   The prior art is best seen in cash redemption machines in which coins are sorted and counted to determine a total value. The user is issued a voucher for an amount related to the total value. Examples of machines for carrying out these transactions are shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,736,251, 6,494,776, 6,484,863 and earlier related patents cited therein. 
   Various other types of machines for both receiving coins and providing the consumer with a credit have been known, including ATM machines and large cash handling machines for gaming operations. An example is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,788,603. 
   A problem in machines that are to be used by consumers without special training is the deposit of bulk coin in the tray or other intake mechanism of the self-service cash redemption machine. As the coins are fed into the machine they tend to jam or clog in the intake opening, which is usually smaller in volume-handling capability than the intake hopper or tray. 
   In the prior art, intake mechanisms for coin sorting machines have been largely unpowered. There have been, however, a few examples of power feeding devices, examples of which are shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,807, U.S. Pat. No. 5,989,118, U.S. Pat. No. 5,040,657, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,965,912. These have often been large devices for large machines. In smaller machines the intake mechanism have been unpowered and subject to jamming. 
   There remains a need for a self-service coin recycling machine, with an improved coin feeding mechanism in which coins do not usually become jammed in the intake opening. The intake mechanism should be easy to operate, and should provide a mechanism to prevent the user from reaching into the coin flow while a feed motor is operating. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The invention relates to a method and a machine for receiving a batch of coinage from a user in a coin hopper, and then moving the coins along an inclined coin path to an intake opening into a body of the cash redemption machine. A cover is disposed over a portion of the inclined coin path to prevent access to the intake opening in the machine and to prevent access to coins in a vicinity of the intake opening. 
   In further aspects of the invention, the cover is preferably pivotable at one end closest to the intake opening and is interfaced with the feeding mechanism, so that if there is any attempt to lift the cover the feeding mechanism will be stopped. The cover is also preferably a solid, transparent member for viewing the coins as they are fed along the inclined coin path. The cover can also be a made of a wire grid. 
   In still further aspects of the invention, the cover is disposed at an acute angle to the feed path and has an angled edge for receiving the coins such that an opening formed between the cover and a transport mechanism becomes wider across the path of the coins to allow larger coins to migrate to one side of the path while accepting smaller coins on an opposite side. This is just one of the many features of the invention that prevents jamming in the intake mechanism, which is a primary problem with such devices in the prior art. 
   Other objects and advantages of the invention, besides those described above, will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art from the description of the preferred embodiments which follows. In the description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and which illustrate examples of the invention. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a front view in elevation of a first embodiment of a self-service cash redemption machine according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a frontal perspective view of the machine of  FIG. 1  with front panels opened for viewing an interior of the machine; 
       FIG. 3  is a detail perspective view of a coin intake area of the machine of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 4  is a detail perspective view of a coin intake subassembly in a first operating position with other parts of the machine removed for a better view; 
       FIG. 5  is a detail perspective view of the coin intake subassembly in a second operating position; 
       FIG. 6  is a block diagram of a controller portion of the cash redemption machine along with sensors and motors in the machine; 
       FIG. 7  is a flow chart of operation of a controller for controlling the operation of the coin intake subassembly of  FIG. 4 ; 
       FIGS. 8   a  ad  8   b  show the coin intake assembly of  FIG. 4  with a modification to the cover member; and 
       FIG. 9  is a detail sectional view taken in the plane indicated by line  9 - 9  in  FIG. 4 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIG. 1  shows a self-service cash redemption machine  10  in which the present invention is incorporated. The machine is housed in a cabinet enclosure  11  having a front door  12 . The door  12  has an opening  14  for viewing a visual display screen  15 . Below this screen  15  are two buttons  16 , identified as “A” and “B”, for allowing the user to enter selections of items on the screen  15 . To the right of the display is an area for an advertising display  17  and below that is a printout slot  18  for receiving a receipt or other printable matter that exits a printer installed inside the enclosure  11 . Just below the printer output slot  18  is a coin intake area  19  for receiving coins into the machine  10 . 
     FIG. 2  shows the machine with the front door  12  removed. The printer  20  is now visible, along with a coin processing assembly  21  having a sorting and counting mechanism for receiving a batch of unsorted coinage from a user and for sorting coins into a plurality of denominations. 
   The printer  20  operates under the control of a controller  30  seen in  FIG. 2 . This is a microcomputerized controller of a type disclosed in Adams et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,602, issued Nov. 30, 1999, and Zwieg et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,640,956, issued Nov. 4, 2003. It includes one or more microelectronic CPU&#39;s, a program memory, a data memory and a program that is executed by a main CPU for controlling the operations of the machine. The controller  30  is also connected to the I/O devices such as the printer  20 , the count sensors on the sorting and counting mechanism and others to be described herein. The printer  20  can print out a voucher or receipt representing the amount of coinage fed into the coin processing assembly  21  and counted by the controller  30  through sensing devices on the sorting mechanism of the coin processing assembly  21 . The user can present this voucher or receipt in payment for merchandise, or could, where permitted, redeem it for cash in the form of notes and a small amount of change less than one dollar. An output device for issuing a card with a pre-paid credit amount, like a phone card, could also be used in place of the printer. 
   The coin processing assembly  21  is commercially available in the assignee&#39;s Mach® 6 line of dual disc coin sorters. As is well known in the art, the coins are deposited on a queueing disc and transferred to a sorting plate where they fall through slots sized for different denominations. From there, the coins are routed into coin receptacles, such as coin bags or removable bins. For details of the construction and operation of dual disc sorters, the disclosures in Adams et al, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,295,899 and 5,525,104 and Adams et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,602, issued Nov. 30, 1999, Zwieg et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,640,956, issued Nov. 4, 2003, and Zwieg et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/896,472, filed Jul. 27, 2004, which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     FIG. 3  shows an enlarged detail view of an improved coin intake mechanism  40 . The coins are deposited in a funnel-shaped hopper area  41  with side walls  42  leading to a front end of an inclined conveyor  43 . The conveyor  43  is inclined at an angle of about twenty degrees to complete the funnel shape around the coin intake area together with the conveyor side walls  42  and a hopper back wall (not seen in  FIG. 3 ). The conveyor  43  extends upward towards and through an intake opening  44  in the wall of the machine cabinet  11 . Coins are fed along a feed path  45  corresponding to a longitudinal direction of the conveyor  43 . Above a portion of the conveyor  43  is a solid, transparent cover  46  that blocks access to a portion of the inclined coin path  45  and to the intake opening  44  to prevent access to the intake opening  44  and to prevent access to coins in a vicinity of the intake opening  44  while the conveyor is running. If the cover  46  is lifted to resolve a problem, such as a foreign object in the feed path, the conveyor  43  will be stopped. 
   Referring next to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the cover  46  is a solid, transparent, planar member that is pivotable at one end facing towards a body of the machine  10  and opposite an end for receiving the coins. The machine  10  has a transparent window member  47  positioned above the intake opening  44  to allow a view into an interior of the cash redemption machine  10 . The cover  46  is disposed in a plane that converges toward the coin hopper area  41  at an acute angle as seen in  FIG. 4 . The cover  46  has an edge  48  facing towards the coin hopper area  41 , the edge  48  being disposed at an acute angle relative to the direction of travel of the coins so as to provide a lateral opening across the coin path  45  that becomes wider as the angled edge  48  recedes toward an intake opening  44  into a body of the cash redemption machine  10 . This will cause smaller coins to fit under any part of the cover  46 , but a larger coin on edge will move over to a wider opening before sliding under the cover  46 . This creates movement within a body of coins and relieves jamming that might otherwise occur when the coins block the opening between the conveyor  43  and the cover  46 . 
   The conveyor  43  has a looped belt  49  that is driven through a roller  43   b  by a motor  50  inside the machine cabinet  11 , with the other end of the conveyor belt  49  looping around a second roller at the hopper end. As seen in more detail in  FIG. 9 , the roller  43   b  has a mid-section circumferential groove which receives a rib  49   a  on the underside of the belt  49 . The rib  49   a  and the belt  49  are typically formed of a resilient, elastic material. Also seen in  FIG. 9  is a platen  43   a . The rib  49   a  is formed along the full length of the looped belt  49  to provide lateral stability to the belts as the belt is moved by the rollers  43   b . In section, the rib has a slight taper along each side, the width of the rib  49   a  being slightly narrower where it contacts the roller  43   b  and the platen  43   a.    
     FIG. 6  is a diagram of the electronic controls portion of the machine  10 . The controller  30  is connected through an I/O interface to various input and output devices. The controller  30  is supplied with power by a power supply  31 . A service keyboard  32  is provided inside the machine for entering commands and data when the door  12  is open. A coin sorting disk level sensor  52  shown diagrammatically in  FIG. 6 , senses the level of coins on a sorting mechanism in the coin processing assembly  21 , and generates a signal to the controller to start the conveyor  43 , subject to the cover  46  being in the proper position. 
   The controller  50  also connects to output devices such as the disc motor  55  and disc brake  54  for the coin sorter and to the conveyor feed motor  50 . The controller  30  also receives input signals from a feed path cover sensing switch  53 . The pivotable cover member  46  is connected to the switch  53 , which will sense the movement of the cover  46  and signal the controller  30  that the conveyor  43  should be stopped (or not started). The controller  30  is connected to control the feed motor  50  in response to these signals. The controller  50  also connects to motors and sensors in a coin sorter/diverter section  56  as more particularly described and illustrated in Zwieg et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/896,472, filed Jul. 27, 2004. 
   The larger I/O devices which are seen on the exterior of the machine, such as the printer  20 , the visual display  15  and the “A” or “B” buttons  16  (through I/O interface  16   a ) are controlled by a personal computer (PC)  33  which is housed in the cabinet  11  of the machine  10  as seen in  FIG. 2 . The personal computer  33  receives power from the power supply  31  through a PC power adapter  35  of a type well known in the art. 
   As seen in  FIG. 7 , the user sees a message displayed on the display  15  to deposit coins in the hopper and depress the “A” button  16 , as represented by display block  60 . As represented by decision block  61 , the personal computer  33  is waiting is a delay loop for the user to start an operating sequence by operating the “A”  16 . When the button has been pushed, as represented by the “Yes” result, the personal computer  33  senses the position of the sensing switch  53  as represented by decision block  62 , and if the cover  46  has not been lifted as represented by the “Yes” result, a second check is made to see that the front door is properly closed for operation of the machine  10 , as represented by decision block  64 . If the cover  46  has been lifted, as represented by the “No” result from executing decision block  62 , then a further message is displayed to the user to lower the cover  46  and press button “A” as represented by display block  63 . If the cover has not been lifted but the door switch is not in the proper position, the routine will loop back to decision block  61 , until the door is properly closed. 
   Assuming that the disc motor  55  has been started as represented by process block  65 , then a check is made for a RUN signal representing the running of the sorter, and if the sorter has started up satisfactorily, the result for executing the test in decision block  66  is a “Yes” result. The program sequence then proceeds to decision block  67 , to check for that the level of coins on the sorting disk is OK. If the result from that check is “Yes,” then the conveyor motor  50  is started as represented by process block  68 . Blocks  69  and  70  represent a check for proper current and operation of the conveyor motor  50 . 
   The user deposits coins in the coin hopper area  41  where they are placed on the conveyor  43  to be fed into the machine  10  and processed. If more coins are to be entered, button “A” is pressed again. If no more coins are to be entered and a voucher or receipt is to be printed, then a display is shown on the visual display to ask the user to wait for the printing of receipt, the receipt is printed and the visual display displays a message advising the user to take the receipt. 
     FIGS. 8   a  and  8   b  show an alternative construction  46   a  for the cover.  FIG. 8   a  shows the cover  46   a  in the operating position, while  FIG. 8   b  shows the cover  46   a  when lifted to access the coin feed path  45   a . In this embodiment, the cover  46   a  is not a solid transparent member but a wire grid that allows coins to fall through to the conveyor  43   a , but blocks other objects from entering the conveyor  43   a  from above, while also allowing visibility of the coin feed path  45   a . The wire grid member  46   a  is hinged and pivoted as described for the solid transparent member  46 . In the example, the wire elements  46   b  of the cover  46   a  run parallel to the direction of coin feeding. In still other versions, the grid member  46   a  could include transverse elements running across the longitudinal elements  46   b . And, the grid member  46   a  can be made of materials other than metal. In all of these variations, the operation of the sensing switch in stopping the feed motor when the cover is lifted would be the same as described above for the solid transparent cover  46 . 
   From this description, it should now be apparent how the invention provides a coin handling machine with an improved coin intake mechanism that will resist jamming and allow resolution of problems in the coin feed path while the feed conveyor is stopped. The machine is easy and convenient to service, maintain and to remove the accumulated coinage. The machine is capable of dispensing a voucher, or a credit to the customer. 
   It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other modifications might be made to these embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which are defined by the following claims.