Abstract:
A paper sheet stacking apparatus comprises a conveying device which has first and second conveying members, wherein take-out ends of the second conveying members are positioned on a more upstream side in a paper sheet conveying direction than a take-out end of the first conveying member, and after a paper sheet is taken out from the second conveying members, the paper sheet is conveyed by only the first conveying member, an impeller which introduces the paper sheet conveyed by only the first conveying member into between vanes thereof to guide the paper sheet in a predetermined direction, and then discharges the paper sheet, and a stack housing which stacks the paper sheets discharged from the impeller.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2005-246145, filed Aug. 26, 2005, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention relates to a paper sheet stacking apparatus to be applied to, for example, a banknote sorting machine for sorting banknotes (hereinafter, referred to as paper sheets) according their denominations and the like.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0005]     In a banknote sorting machine, paper sheets are taken in one by one by a take-in unit, conveyed via a conveyance path, inspected at an inspection unit, and, according to the result of the inspection, sorted and stacked in a stacking apparatus.  
         [0006]     As a stacking apparatus, there has been known, for example, one disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2002-193517. More specifically, the stacking apparatus, as shown in  FIG. 7 , includes a first pair of conveying belts  101  that accepts paper sheets supplied along a conveyance path to pinch and feed the paper sheets, and second pairs of conveying belts  102  that are arranged at both the sides of the first pair of conveying belts  101  with a predetermined distance parallel to each other. Further, the stacking apparatus includes an impeller  104  that introduces paper sheets taken out from the first pair of conveying belts  101  and the second pairs of conveying belts  102  into between vanes  103  to guide the paper sheets in a predetermined direction in slowdown and discharges the paper sheets, and a stack housing that stacks the paper sheets discharged from the impeller  104 .  
         [0007]     The first pair of conveying belts  101  is configured by an upper belt  101   a  and a lower belt  101   b , and the second pair of conveying belts  102  is configured by an upper belt  102   a  and a lower belt  102   b . The upper belts  101   a ,  102   a  are stretched over rollers  105 ,  106  and released upward.  
         [0008]     However, in the prior art, a paper sheet P has been conveyed to a passing area to the impeller  104  by three belts, i.e., the upper belt  101   a  of the first pair of conveying belts  101  and the upper belts  102   a ,  102   a  of the second pairs of conveying belts  102 . Consequently, a force of binding the paper sheet P by the upper belts  101   a ,  102   a ,  102   a  is strong. If the paper sheet P is fed, for example, in its skewed state, the paper sheet gains entry into the vanes  103  as it is in the skewed state.  
         [0009]     For this reason, as shown in  FIG. 8 , the paper sheets cannot gain entry into the vanes  103  of a same phase of impellers  104   a ,  104   b  that are positioned in the front side and the back side, respectively, but the paper sheets get alternately into vanes  103  of different phases, which causes a stack failure.  
         [0010]     Further, even when the paper sheet P is conveyed in a non-skewed state, in particular, in the case where the speed of conveying the paper sheet P is increased in order to increase the processing capacity, the impact at the moment when the paper sheet P collides against the vanes  103  becomes large, and the paper sheet P becomes buckled as shown in  FIG. 9 , which causes a stack failure.  
         [0011]     The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a paper sheet stacking apparatus in which, if a paper sheet entering an impeller is skewed, the skewed state can be corrected, and the impact when the paper sheet enters the impeller can be buffered.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0012]     A paper sheet stacking apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention comprises:  
         [0013]     a conveying device which has a first conveying member, and second conveying members arranged at both the sides of the first conveying member with a predetermined distance parallel to each other, the conveying device conveying paper sheets by the first and second conveying members, wherein take-out ends of the second conveying members are positioned on a more upstream side in a paper sheet conveying direction than a take-out end of the first conveying member, and after the paper sheet is taken out from the second conveying members, the paper sheet is conveyed by only the first conveying member;  
         [0014]     an impeller which introduces the paper sheet conveyed by only the first conveying member into between vanes thereof to guide the paper sheet in a predetermined direction, and then discharges the paper sheet; and  
         [0015]     a stack housing which stacks the paper sheets discharged from the impeller.  
         [0016]     A paper sheet stacking apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention comprises:  
         [0017]     a conveying device which has a first pair of conveying belts, and second pairs of conveying belts arranged at both the sides of the first pair of conveying belts with a predetermined distance parallel to each other, the conveying device conveying paper sheets by the first and second pairs of conveying belts, wherein take-out ends of the second pairs of conveying belts are positioned on a more upstream side in a paper sheet conveying direction than a take-out end of the first pair of conveying belts and the end portion of one belt of the first pair of conveying belts is positioned on a more upstream side in the paper sheet conveying direction than the end portion of the other belt, and after the paper sheet is taken out from the second pairs of conveying belts, the paper sheet is conveyed by only the other belt of the first pair of conveying belts;  
         [0018]     an impeller which introduces the paper sheet conveyed by only the other belt of the first pair of conveying belts into between vanes thereof to guide the paper sheet in a predetermined direction, and then discharges the paper sheet; and  
         [0019]     a stacking unit which stacks the paper sheets discharged from the impeller.  
         [0020]     According to one aspect of the present invention, when paper sheets are skewed, its skewed state can be corrected while the paper sheets can be made to gain entry into vanes of a same phase of neighboring impellers, and further, even when paper sheets enter at a high speed, buckling thereof can be prevented, and stable stacking can be performed.  
         [0021]     Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING  
       [0022]     The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description of the embodiments given below, serve to explain the principles of the invention.  
         [0023]      FIG. 1  is an entire structural view showing a paper sheet processing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0024]      FIG. 2  is a structural view showing a stacking apparatus in the paper sheet processing apparatus shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0025]      FIG. 3  is a plan view showing the arrangement of a conveying device and impellers in the stacking apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0026]      FIG. 4  is a front view showing the arrangement of the conveying device and impellers in the stacking apparatus shown in  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0027]      FIG. 5  is a view showing a paper sheet to be conveyed by the conveying device shown in  FIG. 3 ;  
         [0028]      FIG. 6  is a view showing a paper sheet conveyed to a passing area to the impellers by the conveying device shown in  FIG. 3 ;  
         [0029]      FIG. 7  is a front view showing the arrangement of a conveying device and impellers in a conventional stacking apparatus;  
         [0030]      FIG. 8  is a view showing a paper sheet being guided into vanes of different phases of neighboring impellers in the conventional stacking apparatus; and  
         [0031]      FIG. 9  is a view showing a paper sheet being guided in its skewed state into vanes of impellers in the conventional stacking apparatus. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0032]     Now, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in more details with reference to the accompanying drawings.  
         [0033]      FIG. 1  is a schematic structural view showing a paper sheet sorting apparatus serving as an paper sheet processing apparatus which is an embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0034]     Reference numeral  1  in  FIG. 1  denotes an apparatus main body, and a feeding unit  2  is arranged at substantially the center portion of one side of the apparatus main body  1 . In the feeding unit  2 , plural paper sheets P such as banknotes are contained in the upright position. The feeding unit  2  is provided with a backup plate  4  that is biased by a spring  3 , and the paper sheets P are delivered by the backup plate  4 . A feeding roller  5  is arranged in the direction of delivering the paper sheet P. Under the feeding roller  5 , a rubber roller  55  and a roller  56  that contacts the rubber roller  55  are arranged. The roller  56  is biased by a spring material to clamp and convey the paper sheet together by the roller  55 .  
         [0035]     Further, in the direction of feeding the paper sheet P, a transmissive optical sensor array  70  for detecting the shift amount and the skew amount of the taken-out paper sheet is arranged.  
         [0036]     The paper sheet passes through the optical sensor array  70 , and is then sent to a clamp type conveying mechanism  6  configured by a pair of belts and a roller  7 . A posture correction apparatus  8  for automatically correcting the shift amount and the skew amount of the taken-out paper sheet P is arranged in the conveying mechanism  6 .  
         [0037]     A determining unit  9  is arranged above the conveying mechanism  6 . The determining unit  9  reads various kinds of information from the surface of the paper sheet P conveyed by a pair of rollers  10 , and performs logical operation to the information to be compared with information serving as a reference. Consequently, the determining unit determines the presence or absence of dust or damage, denominations (money amounts) of paper sheets, and further, their four directions of head and tail and front side and back side of the paper sheets.  
         [0038]     A first gate unit  11  is arranged above the determining unit  9 , and the first gate unit  11  changes the direction of conveying the paper sheet P to the arrow “a” direction or the arrow b direction. More specifically, the direction of conveying the paper sheets that are not determined as authentic bills by the determining unit  9  (for example, two paper sheets taken together at one time, paper sheets that are excessively skewed, and the like) is changed to the arrow “a” direction, so that the paper sheets are guided to a reject box  12 .  
         [0039]     On the other hand, when the determining unit  9  determines that a paper sheet is an authentic bill and the front side thereof is upward, the conveying direction is changed to the arrow b direction. In the arrow b direction, a second gate unit  13  is arranged, and the second gate unit  13  changes the direction of conveying the paper sheet P to first and second directions. A first route is arranged in the first direction. A mirror inverting path  14  as inverting means is arranged in the first route, and a twist belt  15  for inverting the paper sheet horizontally by 180 degrees is arranged in the mirror inverting path  14 . A second route is arranged in the second direction. In the second route, a normal conveying belt  16  is arranged, and the paper sheet is conveyed while the posture thereof is maintained as it is. The first and second routes flow together at an interflow unit  17 . The route lengths of the first and second routes to the interflow unit  17  are made equal to each other so that the intervals of paper sheets after the interflow should not become out of alignment.  
         [0040]     A third gate unit  18  is arranged below the interflow unit  17 , and the third gate unit  18  changes the direction of conveying the paper sheet to third and fourth directions. A third route is arranged in the third direction, and a fourth route is arranged in the fourth direction. In the third route, a switch back path  19  is arranged. The rear end of the paper sheet guided to an inversion box  20  of the switch back path  19  is pushed to an inversion roller  21   a  by a tap wheel  21 , and consequently, the head and tail thereof are inverted and the paper sheet is conveyed. A normal conveying belt  22  is arranged in the fourth route, and the paper sheet is conveyed by the conveying belt  22  while the posture thereof is maintained as it is.  
         [0041]     The third and fourth routes are flown together at an interflow unit  23 . The route lengths of the third and fourth routes to the interflow unit  23  are made equal to each other so that the intervals of paper sheets delivered from the interflow unit  23  should not become out of alignment.  
         [0042]     In the paper sheet delivering direction of the interflow unit  23 , a horizontal conveying path  24  is arranged, and the number of gate units  25   a  to  25   d  that is less by one than the number of portions to be divided are arranged in the horizontal conveying path  24 .  
         [0043]     Stacking apparatuses  28 ,  26   a  to  26   d  for respective denominations are arranged below the gate units  25   a  to  25   d . In the stacking apparatuses  28 ,  26   a  to  26   d , paper sheets are piled at level and stacked.  
         [0044]     Reference numeral  27  denotes a 100-note banding apparatus. The 100-note banding apparatus transfers 100 paper sheets stacked in the stacking apparatus  28  from the stacking apparatus  28  to a banding unit  29 , and binds the 100 paper sheets with a strip band  30  into a paper sheet bundle.  
         [0045]      FIG. 2  is a structural view showing the stacking apparatuses  26   a  to  26   d.    
         [0046]     Each of the stacking apparatuses  26   a  to  26   d  is configured by a conveying device  61  for conveying paper sheets, and a stacking unit  62  for stacking the paper sheets conveyed by the conveying device  61 .  
         [0047]     The stacking unit  62  is configured to have a pair of impellers  68  for guiding paper sheets P into between vanes  67  to decelerate the paper sheets and guiding them in a predetermined direction, a scrape-out member (not shown) for scraping out the paper sheets guided by the impellers  68  from the impellers  68 , and a stack housing  69  for stacking the paper sheets scraped out by the scrape-out member. The pair of impellers  68  is arranged so as to be adjacent to each other with a predetermined distance in a direction perpendicular to the direction of conveying the paper sheets.  
         [0048]     The conveying device  61  is, as shown in  FIG. 3 , constituted of a first pair of conveying belts  64  serving as a first conveying member, the conveying belts  64  being arranged around the center of the conveying path along the paper sheet conveying direction, and second pairs of conveying belts  65  serving as a second conveying member, the conveying belts  65  being arranged in parallel to each other with a predetermined distance at both the sides of the first pair of conveying belts  64 . A take-out end of the second pair of conveying belts  65  is positioned on a more upstream side in the paper sheet conveying direction by a predetermined distance than a take-out end of the first pair of conveying belt  64 .  
         [0049]     The first pair of conveying belts  64  is, as shown in  FIG. 4 , constituted of an upper belt  64   a , and a lower belt  64   b  that is overlapped on the upper belt  64   a . The upper belt  64   a  is stretched over a roller  72  and released upward, and the lower belt  64   b  is stretched over a roller  73 . The end portion of the lower belt  64   b  of the first pair of conveying belts  64  is positioned on a more upstream side in the paper sheet conveying direction by a predetermined distance than the end portion of the upper belt  64   a , and the end portion of the upper belt  64   a  is positioned between vane end portions of the pair of impellers  68 . Consequently, the paper sheets pinched and conveyed by the first pair of conveying belts  64  and the second pairs of conveying belts  65  are conveyed from the second pairs of conveying belts  65 , in other words, at a passing area of the paper sheets to the impellers  68 , the paper sheets are conveyed by only the upper belt  64   a  of the first pair of conveying belts  64 .  
         [0050]     Next, the operation for stacking the paper sheets will be explained.  
         [0051]     When the paper sheet P to be conveyed by the conveying device  61  as shown in  FIG. 5  reaches the passing area to the impellers  68  as shown in  FIG. 6 , the paper sheet P is taken out from the second pairs of conveying belts  65 ,  65  and the binding of both the sides thereof is released. After the release of the binding, the paper sheet P is conveyed by only the upper belt  64   a  of the first pair of conveying belts  64 , and guided into between the vanes  67  of the impellers  68 . The guided paper sheet P is guided in a predetermined direction by the rotation of the impellers  68 , and then scraped out by the scrape-out member (not shown) to be stacked in the stack housing  69 .  
         [0052]     As described above, according to the present embodiment, the paper sheets are conveyed by only the upper belt  64   a  of the first pair of conveying belts  64  at the passing area of the paper sheets to the impellers  68 , and the binding of both the sides of the paper sheets by the second pairs of conveying belts  65 ,  65  is released. As a consequence, even if the paper sheet P is skewed, the paper sheet is guided to and contacts the vanes  67  of the impellers  68 , whereby the skewed state is corrected and the paper sheet is taken in the impellers  68 . Accordingly, preferable stacking of paper sheets can be performed.  
         [0053]     Further, even if the paper sheet is not skewed, the impact becomes large and there is a fear that the paper sheet becomes buckled when it is guided to vanes of the impellers at a high speed. However, as described previously, since the binding by means of the second pairs of conveying belts  65 ,  65  is released, the paper sheet moderately slips and decelerates, and the impact at rushing in becomes small. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the paper sheet from being skewed, and preferable stacking can be performed.  
         [0054]     In the above embodiment, the paper sheets are conveyed by only the upper belt  64   a  of the first pair of conveying belts  64  at the passing area of the paper sheets to the impellers  68 , but the present invention is not limited thereto. The end portion of the lower belt  64   b  may be extended to the end portion of the upper belt  64   a , and the paper sheets P may be pinched and conveyed by the upper belt  64   a  and the lower belt  64   b  even at the passing area.  
         [0055]     Additional advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described herein. Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.