Abstract:
A saving box is disclosed, which senses an amount of a coin in accordance with the size of the coin thrown in the saving box and automatically releases a locking unit in accordance with the sensed amount. To this end, an electrical contact node is installed in a rotating lever, and a plurality of another contact nodes are installed to electrically connect with the contact node of the lever in accordance with a rotational angle. Thus, the number of coins thrown in the saving box can be checked by a simple mechanism. At the same time, the amount of the coins can be sensed by load of the coins after the coins pass through the lever.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    The present invention relates to a saving box, and more particularly, to a saving box that senses an amount of a coin in accordance with the size of the coin thrown in the saving box and automatically releases a locking unit in accordance with the sensed amount.  
           [0003]    2. Discussion of the Related Art  
           [0004]    Generally, there are various types of saving boxes. Of them, a piggy box manufactured by ejecting plastic in a pig shape is being commercially sold. The piggy box with a closed type pig shape has a slot at a top surface to insert a coin therein. Such a piggy box is configured so that coins are drawn out therefrom by cutting a portion using a cutting tool such as knife when a user intends to draw out the coins in the piggy box. This piggy box has a drawback in that the piggy box cannot be recycled after the coins are drawn out from the piggy box. Similarly, there is an iron saving box of metal material. In the same manner as the piggy box, the iron saving box includes a coin slot at a top surface and a hole formed at a bottom surface to draw out coins. The hole is tightly fitted into a cover. The iron saving box can be recycled by fitting the cover into the hole after the coins are drawn out by opening the cover. However, in this case, since the user can freely draw out the coins, it is difficult to implant a propensity to save in children&#39;s mind.  
           [0005]    To solve such a problem, as shown in FIG. 1, there is provided another related art saving box. Referring to FIG. 1, a coin slot  100   a  is formed at a top portion of a cylindrical saving box  100  to insert coins  120  therein. A door  110  is hinge coupled to a lower portion of the saving box  100  so that the coins  120  saved in the saving box  100  can be drawn out if the door  110  is opened. A locking unit  111  is connected to the door  110  to control opening and shutting of the door  110 , and a controller  112  is installed at the rear of the locking unit  111  to control the operation of the locking unit  111 . The controller  112  is connected to a counter  130  and a display unit  114 . The counter  130  is installed below the coin slot  100   a  to sense the number of coins drawn in the saving box, calculate an amount of the coins, and output a signal indicative of the calculated amount. The display unit  114  receives the signal from the counter  130  and displays the amount saved in the saving box  100 . A liquid crystal display (LCD) is generally used as the display unit  114 . The controller  112  is connected to an input unit  113  installed below the display unit  114 . The input unit  113  includes a number of buttons to allow a user to input a target amount of coins which will be drawn in the saving box  100 . Therefore, once the user inputs the target amount in the input unit  113 , the input signal is input to the controller  112  so that the controller  112  compares the target amount with an accumulated amount saved in the saving box  100  to control the locking unit  111 , thereby controlling opening and shutting of the door  110 .  
           [0006]    Meanwhile, the counter  130  can sense the amount of the coins  120  inserted through the coin slot  100   a  by sensing either weight of the coins  120  or their sizes. The above elements of the saving box  100  are electrically operated by a power supply (not shown).  
           [0007]    However, the aforementioned related art saving box has several problems.  
           [0008]    In the case that a sensor is used as the counter required to exactly carry out a function of the saving box, a problem arises in that the cost increases. Also, in the case that the counter is configured to sense the sizes of the coins, the counter has a complicated structure, thereby increasing the cost.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a saving box that substantially obviates one or more of the problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.  
           [0010]    An object of the present invention is to provide a saving box that can sense the size of a coin by means of a simple mechanism and automatically release a locking unit in accordance with the sensed result.  
           [0011]    Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the scheme particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.  
           [0012]    To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described, in a saving box which senses an amount of coins inserted in a coin slot and accumulatively calculates the amount of the coins so that a controller automatically opens a door to drawn out the coins if the accumulated amount reaches a target amount, the saving box includes: a guide means connected to the coin slot to guide the coins descending by tare; a lever guided by the guide means and rotated by load of the descending coins, having a first terminal electrically connected to the controller; a plurality of second terminals electrically connected to the first terminal of the lever as the lever rotates and electrically connected to the controller; and an elastic means providing restoring force to allow the lever to return to its original position after the lever rotates.  
           [0013]    The saving box further includes a sensor connected to the controller to sense whether the coins have completely passed through the lever.  
           [0014]    The saving box further includes a catcher installed in a case, a bolt installed in the door and linearly driven to be caught in the catcher, an elastic means which provides elasticity to pull the bolt in an opposite direction of the catcher, and a fixed means fixing the bolt in a state that the bolt is caught in the catcher.  
           [0015]    It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ATTACHED DRAWINGS  
       [0016]    The invention will be described in detail with reference to the following drawings in which like reference numerals refer to like elements wherein:  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a related art saving box;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a saving box according to the present invention;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a saving box according to the present invention;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 4 is a front view of a coin counter which is a part of the saving box according to the present invention;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 5 is a side view of a coin counter which is a part of the saving box according to the present invention;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a state before a coin is inserted in a coin counter of a saving box according to the present invention;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a state that a coin is being inserted in a coin counter of a saving box according to the present invention;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a state that a coin is completely inserted in a coin counter of a saving box according to the present invention;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 9 is a front view illustrating a state that a locking unit of a saving box according to the first embodiment of the present invention is locked;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 10 is a front view illustrating a state that a locking unit of a saving box according to the second embodiment of the present invention is opened;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 11 is a perspective view illustrating an initial state that a coin is inserted in a coin counter of a saving box according to the second embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 12 is a perspective view illustrating an intermediate state that a coin is inserted in a coin counter of a saving box according to the second embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating a final state that a coin is inserted in a coin counter of a saving box according to the second embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 14 is a front view of a PCB at the initial state of FIG. 11;  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 15 is a front view of a PCB at the intermediate state of FIG. 12;  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 16 is a front view of a PCB at the final state of FIG. 13; and  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 17 is a front view of a coin counter at the initial state of FIG. 11. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0034]    Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.  
         [0035]    As shown in FIGS.  2  to  10 , a saving box according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a case  10 , a lid door  11 , a coin counter  20 , and a checking unit  30 . A coin  1  is received in the case  10 . The lid door  11  is fixed to a top portion of the case  10  and includes a coin slot,  11   a , a controller  12 , and a locking unit  40 . The controller  12  is installed at the front and is connected to a display unit and an input unit while the locking unit  40  is installed at the rear. The coin counter  20  is installed at a lower portion of the coin slot  11   a  of the lid door  11  to sense the size of the coin  1  and output the sensed signal to the controller  12 . The checking unit  30  is installed at a lower portion of the coin counter  20  to check whether the coin  1  has been completely drawn in the saving box.  
         [0036]    The display unit connected to the controller  12  displays time and various information as well as a current amount of coins  1  drawn in the saving box or the number of the coins  1 . The input unit can be used to input a target amount or to adjust the time. In addition, various information may be input to the input unit.  
         [0037]    The locking unit  40  installed at the rear of the lid door  11  is connected to the controller  20 , so that the locking state is released in accordance with a signal of the controller  12 . That is, if the amount of the coins accumulated in the saving box reaches a certain amount, the controller  12  outputs the signal to release the locking unit  40 , thereby opening the lid door  11 . Likewise, if the number of the coins  1  reaches a certain number, the locking unit  40  can be released to open the lid door  11 .  
         [0038]    The coin counter  20 , as shown in FIGS.  4  to  8 , includes a PCB  21  vertically installed at the rear below the coin slot  11   a , a guide  26  installed at the front below the coin slot  11   a  to guide the coin  1  drawn in the saving box, together with the PCB  21 , a lever  22  rotating around a rotary shaft  22   a  installed at one side of the PCB  21  as it is pushed by the coin  1  drawn in the saving box, and a torsion spring  23  providing elasticity to restore the lever  22  to its original position after the coin  1  is drawn in the saving box. The PCB  21  includes a plurality of contact nodes  24  coupled to the lever  22  in accordance with a rotational angle of the lever  22 . The contact nodes  23  and the lever  22  are electrically connected to the controller  12  by a cable  25 , so that the controller  12  senses the size of the coin  1  in accordance with the rotational angle of the lever  22 , thereby sensing the number of the coins  1  and their amount. That is to say, as shown in FIG. 3, the number of the contact nodes  24  is four, so that the controller  12  senses the amount of the coins in the order of 50 won, 10 won, 100 won, and 500 won in accordance with the contact order between the contact nodes and the lever  22  as the lever  22  rotates.  
         [0039]    The checking unit  30  that checks insertion of the coin  1 , as shown in FIGS.  4  to  8 , includes a first contact node  31  pushed by the coin to move to the rear if the coin  1  is inserted into the saving box, and a second contact node  32  usually separated from the first contact node  31  and contacted the first contact node  31  when the first contact node  31  is pushed by the coin  1  to move to the rear. The first and second contact nodes  31  and  32  are connected to the controller  12  so that the controller  12  exactly determines whether the coin  1  has been inserted in the saving box. That is, even in case where the amount of the coin calculated by the coin counter  20  is sensed by the controller  12 , the controller  12  does not add the coin  1  to the accumulated amount unless insertion of the coin is completely checked by the checking unit  30 . Preferably, the checking unit  30  is far away from the coin slot  11   a  at a greater distance than the size of the coin  1 .  
         [0040]    In the first embodiment of the present invention, the user inputs a target amount to be saved in the saving box in the input unit. Once the target amount is input to the input unit, the user can set a password in the input unit to prevent the target amount from being input to the input unit again. After the target amount is input to the input unit, the user inserts the coins  1  in the saving box for a certain time until the coins  1  reach the target amount. As shown in FIG. 5, before the coin  1  is inserted in the saving box, the lever  22  is not rotated. As shown in FIG. 6, once the coin  1  starts to be inserted in the saving box, the coin  1  is downwardly inserted in the saving box under the guide of the guide  26 , the PCB  21 , and the lever  22 . At this time, the lever  22  is rotated by being pushed by the coin  1 . A rotational angle of the lever  22  is determined to correspond to the size of the coin  1 , and the signal from the contact node finally coupled to the lever  22  is input to the controller  12  so that the controller  12  senses the size of the coin  1  and at the same time senses the amount of the coin  1 . Once the coin  1  passes through the lever  22 , as shown in FIG. 7, the coin  1  is completely inserted into the case  10  of the saving box while pushing the first contact node  31 . At this time, the first contact node  31  is coupled to the second contact node  32  and input to the controller  12  as an output signal. Thus, the controller  12  adds the amount of the sensed coin  1  to the accumulated amount. Once the accumulated amount is increased by insertion of the coin to exceed the input target amount, the controller  12  outputs the signal to the locking unit  40  to open the lid door  11  and at the same time generates buzzer or melody sound to inform the user that the target amount is saved in the saving box. If the user inputs the target amount too much, the locking unit  40  may not be released even in case where a space for the coins  1  is formed no longer as the coins  1  are accumulated in the case  10 . Therefore, it is preferable that the controller  12  is programmed to automatically open the lid door  11  in case of a certain number of the coins  1 .  
         [0041]    Furthermore, the locking unit  40  of the saving box according to the first embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, includes a catcher  10   a  installed at the rear of the case  10 , a bolt  41  linearly driven to be caught in the catcher  10   a , a tension spring  45  which provides elasticity to backwardly pull the bolt  41  all the time, a hanging member  44  hung in a step portion  41   b  formed at one side of the bolt  41  to restrict movement of the bolt  41  to the rear, thereby maintaining the locking state, and an electromagnet  43  upwardly pulling the hanging member  44  by means of magnetic force to release the hanging state of the bolt  41 . A projection  41   a  is formed at the front of the bolt  41  and is fitted into a slot  42   a  of a guide  42  which guides movement of the bolt  41 . Since the hanging member  44  is configured to downwardly receive elasticity as shown in FIG. 9, the locking state is released if the hanging member  44  is upwardly pulled by the electromagnet  43  at the locking state. The hanging member  44  should be made of a magnetized material that can move by means of magnetic force.  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 9 illustrates a state that the bolt  41  is caught in the catcher  10   a.    
         [0043]    Referring to FIG. 9, since no power is supplied to the electromagnet  43 , the hanging member  44  downwardly descends by its elasticity and is caught in the step portion  41   b  of the bolt  41 . The bolt  41  moves by departing from the elasticity of the tension spring  45 , so that its front portion is fitted into the catcher  10   a . Therefore, the lid door  11  is in the locking state. This is because that the user pushes a portion (not shown) of the bolt  41  exposed to the outside of the lid door  11  in a state that the lid door  11  is fixed to the case  10 .  
         [0044]    [0044]FIG. 10 is a front view illustrating a state that the locking state of the locking unit  40  is released.  
         [0045]    Referring to FIG. 10, the power is supplied to the electromagnet  43 , so that the hanging member  44  is stuck to the electromagnet  43 . The hanging member  44  is released from the step portion  41   b  of the bolt  41  so that the bolt  41  backwardly moves by means of the elasticity of the tension spring  45 . Therefore, the front of the bolt  41  is released from the catcher  10   a , and the lid door  11  can be separated from the case  10 . That is, the user inputs a certain target amount to the input unit connected with the controller  12 , fixes the lid door  11  to the case  10 , and pushes the bolt  41  to maintain the locking state. Then, the user continues to insert the coins  1  to reach the target amount. Once the target amount is saved in the saving box, the controller  12  outputs a signal so that the power is supplied to the electromagnet  43 , thereby releasing the bolt  41  from the catcher  10   a.    
         [0046]    Meanwhile, a coin counter according to the second embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIGS.  11  to  17 , includes a main panel  51  attached to a saving box  1 , two guide rods  53  and  54  attached to the main panel  51  to guide a coin  1  inserted through a coin slot  1   a , and a cover panel  52  for guiding the coin  1  together with the two guide rods  53  and  54  and the main panel  51 . The above elements serve to guide the coin  1  inserted in the saving box  1 .  
         [0047]    The coin counter according to the second embodiment of the present invention further includes a lever  55  rotated by weight of the coin  1 . The lever  55  includes a first arm  55   a , a rotary shaft  56 , and a second arm  55   b . The first arm  55   a  has a middle portion rotatably installed with respect to the main panel  51 , so that the coin  1  descends around the rotary shaft  56 . The second arm  55   b  is disposed at an opposite side of the first arm  55   a  and rotated at the same angle as that of the first arm  55   a.    
         [0048]    The lever  55  is configured such that the coin  1  is caught in the first arm  55   a  and a long slot  55   c  is formed in the second arm  55   b . Once the coin  1  is placed in the first arm  55   a , the lever  55  is rotated clockwise by weight of the coin  1  so that the first arm  55   a  descends together with the coin  1  while the second arm  55   b  ascends. The first arm  55   a  is upwardly bent in a round shape so as to reduce impact due to the weight of the coin  1 .  
         [0049]    In the aforementioned coin counter, the lever  55  is rotated as the coin  1  descends. As a result, the second arm  55   b  of the lever  55  moves upwardly, so that a first terminal  58   a  is connected with a cable  61 . The first terminal  58   a  is fitted into the slot  55   c  formed in the second arm  55   b  and performs a straight-line motion up and down. Also, the first terminal  58   a  is connected with the cable  61  through a rod  58  fitted into the slot  55   c . A guide cover  59  having a longitudinal slot  59   a  is uprightly installed in a printed circuit board (PCB)  70  connected to the main panel  51  so as to guide the rod  58  in an up and down straight-line direction. Therefore, the rod  58  moves up and down in a straight-line direction under the guide of the slot  59   a  of the guide cover  59 . The first terminal  58  moves in a straight-line direction accordingly. Furthermore, a plurality of second terminals  60   a  are installed in the PCB  70  at constant intervals and are connected to a cable  60 . Each of the second terminals is repeatedly turned on/off as the first terminal  58   a  moves up and down. A spring  57  is connected to one end of the rod  58 . One end of the spring  57  is fixed to a fixed member  71  fixed to one side of the PCB  70 . Therefore, after the lever  55  is rotated by weight of the coin  1 , the lever  55  returns to its original position by means of elasticity of the spring  57 .  
         [0050]    Once the coin  1  passes through the coin slot  1   a  of the saving box  1  as shown in FIG. 2, the coin  1  moves downwardly by passing through the main panel  51 , the cover panel  52 , and the two guide rods  53  and  54  as shown in FIGS. 11 and 17. The coin  1  is caught on the first arm  55   a  of the lever  55 . At this time, since the first arm  55   a  of the lever  55  is upwardly bent in a round shape, any impact that may occur when the coin  1  contacts the first arm  55   a  is reduced. Since the first arm  55   a  is hung down at a portion far away from the rotary shaft, the coin  1  contacts a longer guide rod  53  of the two guide rods  53  and  54  and at the same time contacts a top portion of the first arm  55   a . Also, the first terminal  58   a , as shown in FIG. 14, is disposed at the lowest portion and has no change.  
         [0051]    The coin  1  caught on the first arm  55   a  of the lever  55 , as shown in FIG. 12, continues to move downwardly by departing from the elasticity of the spring  57  by means of its weight. At this time, the coin  1  is, of course, in contact with the first arm  55   a  and the longer guide rod  53 . Meanwhile, the lever  55  is rotated and thus the second arm  55   b  is also rotated at the same angle as that of the lever  55  because the coin  1  moves downwardly while pushing the first arm  55   a . Accordingly, the spring  57  connected to the rod  58  is elongated. At this time, the first terminal  58   a , as shown in FIG. 15, is turned on/off together with the second terminals  60   a  while moving upwardly. In FIG. 15, the first terminal  58   a  is turned on/off five times. Once the first terminal  58   a  is turned on/off, its signal starts to be input to the controller  12  through the cables  60  and  61 .  
         [0052]    Once the coin  1  departs from the first arm  55   a  as shown in FIG. 13 as it continues to descend, the lever  55  is rotated clockwise so that the distance between the end of the first arm  55   a  and the guide rod  53  becomes greater than a diameter of the coin  1 , thereby completely descending the coin  1 . At this time, the spring  57  is more elongated than the state of FIG. 12, and the second arm  55   b  is also rotated at a greater angle. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 16, the first terminal  55   a  passes through twelve second terminals  60   a , so that twelve on/off signals are input to the controller  12 .  
         [0053]    Afterwards, once the coin  1  departs from the lever  55  to descend, the coin  1  descends in the saving box  1 . The lever  55  returns to its original position by rotating counterclockwise by means of the elasticity of the spring  57 , as shown in FIGS. 11 and 17. The rod  58  of the first terminal  58   a  is fitted into the slot  59   a  of the guide cover  59  to move up and down in a straight-line direction. At the same time, since the rod  58  is also fitted into the slot  55   c  of the second arm  55   b  of the lever  55 , interference occurs between the two slots  55   c  and  59   a . To remove the interference, as shown in FIG. 17, the slot  55   c  formed in the second arm  55   b  of the lever  55  has a longer length. Thus, if the rod  58  of the first terminal  58   a  is disposed at the lowest original portion, it is disposed at the right of the slot  55   c  and moves to the left of the slot  55   c  as the first terminal  58   a  moves upwardly.  
         [0054]    As described above, once the coin  1  having a certain diameter descends and thus the first terminal  58   a  is turned on/off several times while contacting a certain number of the second terminals  60   a , a signal of the first terminal  58   a  is input to the controller  12 . Thus, the controller  12  can sense the size of the coin  1  by means of the input signal. Then, the controller  12  determines the amount of the coin corresponding to the size of the coin by means of a previously set program. Therefore, the controller  12  can calculate the accumulated amount of the coins saved in the saving box in accordance with the input signal. Meanwhile, to sense the size of the coin and its amount, the first terminal is turned on/off twelve times in case of the size of the coin illustrated in the embodiment, it is turned on/off less than twelve times in case of the coin having a smaller size, and it is turned on/off greater than twelve times in case of the coin having a greater size.  
         [0055]    As aforementioned, the saving box according to the present invention has advantages in that a simple contact terminal is mechanically installed to check the amount of the coins inserted in the saving box and also to check whether the coins have been completely inserted therein.  
         [0056]    The foregoing embodiments are merely exemplary and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention. The present teachings can be readily applied to other types of apparatuses. The description of the present invention is intended to be illustrative, and not to limit the scope of the claims. Many alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art.