Patent Publication Number: US-2013233875-A1

Title: Automatic bill discharging device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2012-049591, filed Mar. 6, 2012, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     FIELD 
     Embodiments described herein relate generally to an automatic bill discharging device which automatically discharges bills. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Recently, in shops such as supermarkets, a bill discharging device which automatically discharges bills in response to a signal outputted from a Point Of Sales terminal (POS terminal) or an Electronic Cash Register (ECR) has been introduced. This automatic bill discharging device stores bills in a temporary storing chamber in a standing state, and lifts the temporary storing chamber upwardly. The bills are discharged from a discharging port formed on an upper portion of the device. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an automatic bill discharging device according to a first embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the automatic bill discharging device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a temporary storing chamber and a lifting mechanism of the automatic bill discharging unit according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a flow chart of a bill discharging operation of the automatic bill discharging device according to a first embodiment. 
         FIGS. 5A to 5C  are views of the lifting mechanism and an inclining mechanism of the first embodiment in different states. 
         FIGS. 6A to 6C  are views of a lifting mechanism according to a second embodiment in different states. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In general, according to one embodiment, an automatic bill discharging device includes: a storing unit configured to store a plurality of sheets of bills; a temporary storing unit having a bottom plate which supports a bottom side of the bills in a standing position and temporarily stores the bills therein; a discharging port arranged above the temporary storing unit; a conveying mechanism configured to convey the bills to the temporary storing unit from the storing unit; and an inclining mechanism configured to incline the bills in the temporary storing unit such that a position of one end of the bills is set higher than a position of the other end of the bills. 
     According to another embodiment, an automatic bill discharging device includes: a storing unit configured to store a plurality of sheets of bills; a temporary storing unit having a bottom plate which supports a bottom side of the bills in a standing position and temporarily stores the bills therein; a discharging port arranged above the temporary storing unit; a conveying mechanism configured to convey the bills to the temporary storing unit from the storing unit; and an inclining mechanism which inclines the bills such that a position of one end of the bills is set higher than a position of the other end of the bills by pushing one end of the bottom plate upwardly with respect to the other end of the bottom plate. 
     Hereinafter, further embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals used in different drawings denote the same or similar portions. 
     A first embodiment will be described with reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 5C .  FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an automatic bill discharging device. An automatic bill discharging device  1  may be arranged on a register counter of a shop, for example. A housing  10  of the automatic bill discharging device  1  houses a bill receiving unit  12 , a bill discharging unit  14 , a bill storing unit  15 , a conveying mechanism  17 , and a controller  20 . The bill receiving unit  12  has an upper portion thereof opened thus providing a bill receiving port  11  into which bills are inserted. The bill discharging unit  14  includes a bill discharging port  13 , a temporary storing chamber  18  and a lifting mechanism  19 . The bill discharging port  13  is arranged in the vicinity of the bill receiving port  11 , and has an upper end thereof opened. The temporary storing chamber  18  can be lifted upwardly by the lifting mechanism  19 . Bills are discharged from the bill discharging port  13 . A bottom portion of the temporary storing chamber  18  is inclined by an inclining mechanism  50 . 
     The bill storing unit  15  includes a first storing unit  22 , a second storing unit  23  and a third storing unit  24  for storing bills of different kinds. The conveying mechanism  17  conveys bills from the bill receiving unit  12  to the bill storing unit  15  or from the bill storing unit  15  to the bill discharging unit  14 . The controller  20  controls the power supplied to the bill receiving unit  12 , the bill discharging unit  14 , the bill storing unit  15 , the conveying mechanism  17 , and the lifting mechanism  19 . 
     The bill receiving port  11  receives bills inserted by an operator. The bill receiving unit  12  separates the bills deposited through the bill receiving port  11  one by one and conveys the bills to a conveying path  16  in a standing state. 
     The bill discharging port  13  has a rectangular opening. A recessed portion  21  is formed between the bill discharging port  13  and the bill receiving port  11 . The recessed portion  21  is positioned on a conveying mechanism  17  side (left side) of the bill discharging port  13 . The recessed portion  21  exposes the inside of the temporary storing chamber  18  as viewed from a front side of the device. The operator may easily grasp the bills due to the provision of the recessed portion  21 . A space where the bills are stacked is provided below the bill discharging port  13 . The bill discharging unit  14 , the temporary storing chamber  18  and the lifting mechanism  19  are arranged inside this space. Bills stored in the temporary storing chamber  18  are collectively ejected toward the bill discharging port  13 . A width of the bill discharging port  13  in a device width direction is set larger than a long side of the largest bill which can be processed by the device, where the device width direction is defined as the lateral direction while the operator faces a front surface of the housing  10 . The bill discharging port  13  may be covered with a shutter. 
     The bill discharging unit  14  discharges the bills which are conveyed from the conveying mechanism  17  one by one in a standing position to the outside of the device while setting a position of left ends of the bills higher than a position of right ends of the bills. 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the automatic bill discharging device  1 . The block diagram is a view of the automatic bill discharging device  1  as viewed from above. The bill storing unit  15  is connected to the bill receiving unit  12  and the bill discharging unit  14  by way of the conveying mechanism  17 . The bill storing unit  15  includes a first storing unit  22 , a second storing unit  23  and the third storing unit  24 . The first storing unit  22  has a rectangular parallelepiped shape. The first storing unit  22  stores bills in a standing state as well as in a state where a long side of the bill is parallel to the device width direction. The first storing unit  22  has a vertically extending narrow slit  25  on one side surface thereof. The slit  25  is formed on the side surface of the first storing unit  22  which faces the conveying mechanism  17 . 
     The first storing unit  22  may include a pair of rollers and an impeller in the vicinity of the slit  25 . The rollers provide the function of pulling bills conveyed by the conveying mechanism  17  to the inside of the first storing unit  22 . The rollers also provide the function of delivering bills that are inside the first storing unit  22  to the conveying mechanism  17 . The first storing unit  22  may include a shutter in the slit  25 . The second storing unit  23  and the third storing unit  24  have the same structure as the first storing unit  22 . A bill storing capacity of the first storing unit  22  may be larger than bill storing capacities of the second storing unit  23  and the third storing unit  24 . The first storing unit  22  may store bills which are used most frequently. The number of storing units may be different depending on the country where the automatic bill discharging device is used. 
     The conveying mechanism  17  includes a plurality of conveying rollers  26 , a plurality of guides  27 , identifying sensors  28 ,  29 , and a plurality of gates  30  along the conveying path  16 . The conveying path  16  is formed of the plurality of conveying rollers  26  and the plurality of guides  27 . The conveying rollers  26  are a pair of rollers. One of the conveying rollers  26  is connected to a motor not shown in the drawing. The rotational direction of the conveying rollers  26  can be changed by changing the driving direction of the motor. The conveying rollers  26  change the conveying direction of bills in response to an instruction from the controller  20 . 
     The identifying sensors  28 ,  29  perform denomination determination and true or false determination of bills. The identifying sensors  28 ,  29  maybe of any sensor type, including a light blocking sensor, a reflection-type optical sensor, a transmission-type optical sensor, a magnetic sensor, a material sensor and the like, or any combination of these sensors. The light blocking sensor measures a size of a bill. The reflection-type optical sensor detects a reflection light quantity by irradiating light to a bill. The transmission-type optical sensor detects a transmitting light quantity by irradiating light to a bill. The magnetic sensor detects magnetism generated on a bill. The material sensor measures an electric resistance value of a face of a bill. 
     A gate  60  is provided between the conveying path  16  and the slit  25  of the second storing unit  23 . A gate  61  is provided between the conveying path  16  and the slit  25  of the third storing unit  24 . A gate  62  is provided between the conveying path  16  and the bill discharging unit  14 . The gates  60 ,  61 ,  62  are configured to be movable between a position indicated by a solid line and a position indicated by a dotted line. For example, symbol  60 A indicates a standby position of the gate  60 . When the gate  60  is moved to a position  60 B, a bill is guided to the second storing unit  23  from the conveying path  16  by the gate  60 . These gates  60 ,  61 ,  62  are controlled by the controller  20 . 
     The bill receiving unit  12  includes discharge rollers for discharging bills one by one to the conveying mechanism  17 . The bill discharging unit  14  has a slit  37  which receives bills conveyed by the conveying mechanism  17 . A sensor  32  is arranged in the vicinity of the slit  37 . The sensor  32  detects passing of a bill which enters the bill discharging unit  14 . The light blocking sensor may be used as the sensor  32 . 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the temporary storing chamber  18  and the lifting mechanism  19  of the bill discharging unit  14 . The temporary storing chamber  18  is constituted of a bottom plate  33 , side walls  35 ,  36  and a fixed wall  34 . The side wall  35  has the slit  37 . The slit  37  constitutes an inlet for bills conveyed by the conveying mechanism  17 . The temporary storing chamber  18  has a function of sandwiching bills using a drive wall not shown in the drawing and the fixed wall  34 . The drive wall is arranged parallel to the fixed wall  34 . Each time a bill enters the temporary storing chamber  18  through the slit  37 , the drive wall moves in a direction approaching the fixed wall  34 , thus pushing the bills to the fixed wall  34 . A plurality of impellers and rollers not shown in the drawing are arranged inside the temporary storing chamber  18  so as to pull the bills inside the temporary storing chamber  18 . 
     The inclining mechanism  50  is connected to a lower side of the bottom plate  33 . A hole is formed in the bottom plate  33 , and a bill lift plate  51  of the inclining mechanism  50  is arranged in the hole. The inclining mechanism  50  includes an actuator inside thereof, which lifts the bill lift plate  51 . 
     The lifting mechanism  19  includes first and second lifting mechanisms. The first lifting mechanism includes a drive roller  38 , a belt  39  and a pulley  40 . One end of the belt  39  is connected to the side wall  35 . The second lifting mechanism includes a drive roller  41 , a belt  42  and a pulley  43 . One end of the belt  42  is connected to the side wall  36 . The drive rollers  38 ,  41  and the pulley  43  are arranged inside of the automatic bill discharging device  1  to be stationary. By rotating the drive rollers  38 ,  41  in the directions indicated by arrows, the belts  39 ,  42  are wound around the drive rollers  38 ,  41  so that the temporary storing chamber  18  is lifted upwardly. 
       FIG. 4  is a flow chart of a bill discharging operation of the automatic bill discharging device  1 . The controller  20  receives a bill discharging instruction from an external host terminal (Act  1 ). The controller  20  determines the bill type and the number of bills to be discharged in response to the discharging instruction. For example, when the second storing unit  23  discharges three sheets of bills, the controller  20  transmits an instruction to the motor of the conveying mechanism  17  to rotate in the direction that the bills are conveyed to the bill discharging unit  14  from the bill storing unit  15 . The gate  60  moves to the position  60 B. The gate  62  moves to a position  62 B. The rollers inside the second storing unit  23  discharge one sheet of bill through the slit  25 . The bill is guided to the conveying mechanism  17  by the gate  60 . The bill type is determined by the identifying sensors  28 ,  29 . The controller  20  checks whether or not the conveying bill is genuine or counterfeit. 
     The gate  62  moves to the position  62 B. The bill is guided to the bill discharging unit  14  by the gate  62 . The sensor  32  detects passing of the bill. The controller  20  counts the number of sheets of bills in the bill discharging unit  14  based on an output of the sensor  32 . 
     The controller  20  checks whether or not the bills of preset types and of preset number are stored in the bill discharging unit  14  (Act  2 ). When the bills of right type and of the right number are stacked in the bill discharging unit  14 , the controller  20  drives the lifting mechanism  19  so that upper portions of the stacked bills are moved to a position higher than the bill discharging port  13  (Act  3 ) . When driving of the lifting mechanism  19  is finished, the controller  20  drives the inclining mechanism  50 . 
       FIG. 5A  to  FIG. 5C  are views of the lifting mechanism  19  and the inclining mechanism  50  in different states. In  FIG. 5A , the lifting mechanism  19  is stopped at a position where the lifting mechanism  19  receives bills from the conveying mechanism  17 . When an operation of the lifting mechanism  19  is started, as shown in  FIG. 5B , the bottom plate  33  of the temporary storing chamber  18  is elevated in the vertical direction. When the operation of the lifting mechanism  19  is stopped, as shown in  FIG. 5C , an operation of the inclining mechanism  50  is started so that a left lower side of the bills is lifted by the bill lift plate  51 . 
       FIG. 6A  to  FIG. 6C  are views of a lifting mechanism  19  according to a second embodiment in different states. The lifting mechanism  19  includes a bottom plate  33 , guide rails  52 ,  53 , pivots  54 ,  55  and a first lifting mechanism and a second lifting mechanism not shown in the drawings. The bottom plate  33  has the pivot  54  on a left end thereof and the pivot  55  on a right end thereof. The guide rails  52 ,  53  extend in the vertical direction. The guide rail  52  guides the pivot  54  to a position higher than the guide rail  53  in the vertical direction. The pivot  54  is connected to the guide rail  52 . The pivot  55  is connected to the guide rail  53 . 
     In  FIG. 6A , the lifting mechanism  19  is stopped at a position where the lifting mechanism  19  receives the bills from the conveying mechanism  17 . When an operation of the lifting mechanism  19  is started, as shown in  FIG. 6B , the bottom plate  33  of a temporary storing chamber  18  is elevated in the vertical direction. The pivot  55  is stopped at an upper end of the guide rail  53 . A drive roller  41  of the second lifting mechanism may be stopped at that time. Driving of a drive roller  38  of the first lifting mechanism is continued. The pivot  54  is stopped at an upper end of the guide rail  52  as shown in  FIG. 6C . Due to the difference in height between the upper ends of the guide rails  52 ,  53 , a left side of the bottom plate  33  is stopped at a position higher than a position of a right side of the bottom plate  33 . Due to the inclining of the bottom plate  33 , left ends of the bills are at a position higher than a position of right ends of the bills. 
     In this embodiment, a left end of a bill discharging port  13  is formed in a recessed shape due to the formation of a recessed portion  21 . Further, the lifting mechanism and an inclining mechanism are arranged on a left side in conformity with the recessed portion  21 . Accordingly, an operator may easily grasp the left ends of the bills. Further, visibility of discharged bills is enhanced. The recessed portion  21  may be formed on a right end side of the automatic bill discharging device  1 . 
     In the above-mentioned embodiments, various modifications are conceivable with respect to the constitution of the lifting mechanism  19 . For example, the lifting mechanism  19  may be a mechanism which pushes the bottom plate  33  by actuators which differ in extension and contraction amount. 
     While certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the inventions . Indeed, the novel embodiments described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the embodiments described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the inventions. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the inventions.