Patent Publication Number: US-6666448-B2

Title: Apparatus handling paper sheets and the like

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to an apparatus for handling paper sheets and the like. 
     A conventional apparatus for handling paper sheets and the like is disclosed in JP-A-2000-72311. 
     A paper sheets and the like receiving cassette of this apparatus for handling paper sheets and the like includes a paper sheets and the like introducing mechanism for introducing paper sheets and the like, a paper sheets and the like introducing space for stacking the paper sheets and the like introduced by the paper sheets and the like introducing mechanism, a paper sheets and the like receiving space for storing the paper sheets and the like stacked in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, a paper sheets and the like receiving mechanism for bringing the paper sheets and the like from the introducing space into the receiving space, and a movable partition member for separating the paper sheets and the like introducing space from the receiving space. 
     The paper sheets and the like are upwardly fed one by one between guides and elastic components by the paper sheets and the like introducing mechanism, and are introduced into the paper sheets and the like introducing space from the lower side thereof, and are temporarily stopped there. Thereafter, the elastic components rotates to push the paper sheets and the like toward the receiving space, and the paper sheets and the like are introduced in an upstanding condition, with their lower edges arranged neatly on a bottom surface guide, and the bills (paper sheets and the like) are not restricted. When the introducing operation is finished, the bills in the introducing space are stored into the receiving space by the receiving mechanism. 
     In the above conventional technique, there are occasions when the number of paper sheets and the like, which can be introduced, is limited. 
     For example, when paper sheets and the like, tending to be folded (particularly those having a fold directed toward a bill introducing port and paper sheets and the like, tending to be curled), are introduced in a large amount, the folded portion or the curled portion of the paper sheets and the like projects from the introducing space into an introducing transfer path, and interferes with the subsequent paper sheets and the like, so that an edge portion of the paper sheets and the like is folded, and when the number of such projecting paper sheets and the like increases, the paper sheets and the like to be subsequently introduced, in some cases, tend to jam in the vicinity of the introducing port. 
     In the case of providing components for preventing a fold and a curl in order to overcome this problem, such fold or curl rises at different positions when the paper sheets and the like to be introduced have different sizes, and the number of the positions, at which these prevention members are provided, increases, and the mechanism becomes complicated, and the production cost increases. And besides, there may be used paper sheets and the like of such a size that a fold or a curl thereof can not be prevented by the prevention member. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an apparatus for handling paper sheets and the like in which even when paper sheets and the like of different sizes, as well as paper sheets and the like tending to be folded or curled, are introduced in a large amount into the apparatus for handling paper sheets and the like, these paper sheets and the like can be positively stored in an upstanding condition in a limited small space, that is, in a receiving cassette or an inlet/outlet port, and the receiving cassette or the inlet/outlet port is highly-reliable and inexpensive, and is less liable to troubles such as jam of the paper sheets and the like. 
     According to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for handling paper sheets and the like comprising a paper sheets and the like inlet/outlet port through which paper sheets and the like are put into and out of the apparatus, a discrimination portion for discriminating between the paper sheets and the like, a receiving cassette for storing the paper sheets and the like, and a transfer path interconnecting the paper sheets and the like inlet/outlet port, the discrimination portion and the receiving cassette so as to transfer the paper sheets and the like. In the present invention, the receiving cassette comprises introducing means for introducing the paper sheets and the like into the receiving cassette from a lower side thereof, a paper sheets and the like introducing space for temporarily gripping and stacking the paper sheets and the like in an upstanding posture, and push means for pushing the paper sheets and the like, introduced by the introducing means, into the paper sheets and the like introducing space. 
     With this construction, the paper sheets and the like, pushed into the paper sheets and the like introducing space, can be gripped in an upstanding posture even if these paper sheets and the like tend to be folded or curled, and the folding or curling of the paper sheets and the like can be prevented, and a larger number of paper sheets and the like (bills) can be introduced into a limited space. 
     There is provided gripping means for gripping lower portions of the paper sheets and the like stacked in an upstanding posture in the paper sheets and the like introducing space. With this construction, the lower edges of the paper sheets and the like are prevented from projecting into the paper sheets and the like introducing port, and therefore are prevented from interfering with a subsequent paper sheets and the like. 
     The receiving cassette includes a receiving space for storing the paper sheets and the like, disposed in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, in a stacked manner, push means for pushing the paper sheets and the like, stored in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, into the receiving space, and partition means for preventing the paper sheets and the like, stored in the receiving space, from interfering with the paper sheets and the like stored in the paper sheets and the like introducing space. 
     The receiving cassette includes a paper sheets and the like introducing mechanism for introducing paper sheets and the like into the receiving cassette from the exterior thereof, a paper sheets and the like introducing space for temporarily stacking the paper sheets and the like introduced by the paper sheets and the like introducing mechanism, and a receiving space for storing the paper sheets and the like introduced into the receiving cassette. The paper sheets and the like introducing mechanism comprises rollers, which are provided in the vicinity of a paper sheets and the like introducing port of the receiving cassette, and grip the paper sheets and the like to introduce the same into the receiving cassette from the lower side thereof, and brush rollers which can be rotated about an axis, on which those of the rollers, provided in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, are disposed, and have a plurality of radially-extending brush portions (circumferentially spaced from one another at equal intervals) which hold the paper sheets and the like, brought out of gripping engagement with the rollers, and introduced into the paper sheets and the like introducing space, in an upstanding posture, and partition means, provided in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, can be moved away from the brush rollers, and have an upper end portion slanting toward the brush rollers, and when the brush rollers are rotated, the brush portions are brought into contact with a lower end portion of the partition means to grip the paper sheets and the like, temporarily stacked in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, in an upstanding posture in such a manner that the paper sheets and the like are held in intimate contact with the slanting surface of the partition means. 
     With this construction, the lower edges of the paper sheets and the like, temporarily stacked in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, are effectively prevented from interfering with the subsequent paper sheets and the like. 
     There is provided projection prevention means for preventing the lower edges of the paper sheets and the like, stacked in an upstanding posture in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, from projecting into the paper sheets and the like introducing port of the receiving cassette, and with this construction the lower edges of the paper sheets and the like, temporarily stacked in the paper sheets and the like introducing space, are more effectively prevented from interfering with the subsequent paper sheets and the like, and a large number of paper sheets and the like can be introduced into the receiving cassette. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a transverse cross-sectional view of a preferred embodiment of a receiving cassette of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the receiving cassette; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of brush rollers of the receiving cassette; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a guide of the receiving cassette; 
     FIG. 5 a view explanatory of a bill-introducing operation; 
     FIG. 6 is a view explanatory of the bill-introducing operation; 
     FIG. 7 is a view explanatory of the bill-introducing operation; 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a condition in which curled bills are introduced into the receiving cassette; 
     FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a condition in which the curled bills are introduced into the receiving cassette; 
     FIG. 10 is a view explanatory of a storing operation; 
     FIG. 11 is a transverse cross-sectional view of a cash slot assembly port according to embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 12 is a side-elevational view of the construction of a preferred embodiment of a bill recycling module of the invention; and 
     FIG. 13 is a view showing one embodiment of an automated teller machine of the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     A preferred embodiment of an automated teller machine of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 13 shows the automated teller machine  101  according to an embodiment of the present invention. The automated teller machine  101  includes, at its front side, a card insertion/discharge port  102 , into which the user inserts a magnetic card for trade purposes and from which the card and a printed trade specification are discharged, a passbook insertion/discharge port  103 , into which the user inserts a passbook for trade purposes and from which the passbook, having data (of the amount of entry and discharge money, the balance and so on) printed thereon, is discharged, a bill recycling module  1 , having a cash slot assembly port  2  into which bills to be deposited are inserted by the user and from which bills to be paid to the user are discharged, an operating portion  105  (comprising a touch panel) which displays how to operate this operating portion, and enables the user to input contents of the trade which he is going to make, and a control portion for controlling the whole of the automated teller machine  101 . Cash is directly put into and discharged from the automated teller machine by the operation of the user. 
     FIG. 12 is a side-elevational view showing the construction of the bill recycling module  1  of the automated teller machine of this embodiment shown in FIG.  13 . 
     The bill recycling module  1  includes the cash slot assembly port  2 , through which the bills are put into and out of the apparatus by the user, a bill validator  3  for discriminating between the bills, a temporary stacker  4  for once storing the entry bills until the trade is established, cash recycling box  6 ,  7  and  8  for storing the entry bills (for which the trade has been established) and discharge (outgoing) bills in accordance with the kinds of bills, an entry cash receiving cassette  9  for storing those of the entry bills, which are not used as discharge bills, and for storing those of the entry bills which can not be discriminated by the validator  3 , a bill feeding path  5  for feeding the bills to the cash slot assembly port  2 , the temporary stacker  4 , the cash recycling boxes  6 ,  7  and  8  and the entry cash receiving cassette  9  via the bill validator  3 , and the control portion (not shown). 
     The entry cash receiving cassette  9  and the cash recycling boxes  6 ,  7  and  8  are cassette-like receiving containers, respectively, and can be removed from the body of the bill recycling module  1  when replenishing and recovering bills. 
     A foreign matter box  10  is provided below the cash slot assembly port  2 , and coins and others, inadvertently inserted, together with the entry bills, into this port  2 , are separated from the bills, and are received in this box  10 . 
     Next, the construction of the entry cash receiving cassette  9 , provided in the paper sheets and the like handling apparatus  1  of this embodiment, will be described with reference to the drawings. 
     FIG. 1 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the entry cash receiving cassette  9 , and FIG. 2 is a top plan view thereof. The entry cash receiving cassette  9  comprises a bill introducing mechanism  11  (serving as bill introducing means), a bill introducing portion  12 , a receiving space  13 , and a bill receiving mechanism. In this embodiment, the entry cash receiving cassette can store a large number of (for example, 3,000) bills by increasing the dimension of the receiving space  13  in a storing direction. 
     The bill introducing mechanism  11  is a mechanism for introducing bills BL into the entry cash receiving cassette  9  from the exterior thereof, and this mechanism comprises receiving rollers  14 , rotated by a drive source (not shown) via gears, abutment rollers  16  and  18 , which are opposed to the receiving rollers  14 , and cooperate with the receiving rollers  14  to feed the bill held therebetween, brush rollers  17 , which are disposed on an axis, on which the abutment rollers  16  are disposed, and have brush portions, made of an elastic material, and are rotated by the drive source (not shown) independently of the abutment rollers  16 , a plurality of lower receiving guides  15 , which are spaced from one another in a direction of the axis of the receiving rollers  14 , and guide the introduced bills, a guide  20 , which forms bottom surfaces of the bill introducing portion  12  and receiving space  13  and a bill-introducing guide path, and guides the bills from the bill introducing mechanism to the receiving space, and an upper receiving guide  19  for guiding an upper edge of the introduced bill BL toward the introducing space  12 . 
     The bill introducing portion  12  is a space formed by the guide  20 , an upper partition plate  23 , lower partition plates  21  and the upper receiving guide  19 , and the bills, introduced by the bill introducing mechanism  11 , are temporarily stored in this space. 
     The receiving space  13  is a space formed by the upper partition plate  23  and a press plate  24 , and the bills, transferred to the entry cash receiving cassette  9 , are finally stored in this space. 
     The bill receiving mechanism is a mechanism (serving as pushing means) for moving the bills, introduced and stored in the bill introducing portion  12 , to the receiving space  13 , and this mechanism comprises a push plate  22 , which can be moved by a drive source (not shown), and the upper partition plate  23 . The upper partition plate  23  can be rotated about an axis of a support shaft  23   a , on which the upper partition plate  23  is supported, in a direction of arrow A, but can not be rotated toward the bill introducing portion  12 . The support shaft  23   a  is connected to a drive belt, and the upper partition plate  23  is rotated in accordance with the movement of the push plate  22 . 
     The distance between the lower end of the upper partition plate  23  and the bottom surface of the guide  20  is smaller than the shorter side of minimum-size bills which are to be handled by the bill handling apparatus  1 . The width of the upper partition plate  23  in the direction of the axis of the roller shaft is generally equal to the width of the bill introducing portion  12  and receiving space  13 . 
     For introducing a large number of bills into the bill introducing portion  12 , it is desirable to increase the size of the bill introducing portion  12 . However, if the size of the bill introducing portion  12  is excessively increased, the number of bills to be stored in the receiving space  13  would be limited. In order that the bill can be gripped by (or held between) the brush portions of the brush rollers  17  and the lower partition plates  21  projecting from the bottom surface of the bill introducing portion  12 , the distal ends of the brush portions need to contact the lower partition plates  21  as will be described later. In addition, the lower partition plates  21  need to be provided at such a position that minimum-size bills to be handled will not fall toward the bill introducing portion  12 , and can be held in an upstanding condition. Therefore, the position of the lower partition plates  21  is determined by the length of the brush portions of the brush rollers  17  and the sizes of bills to be handled. 
     When introducing a small number of bills into the bill introducing portion  12 , the bills are gripped by the brush portions of the brush rollers  17  and the lower partition plates  21  in an upstanding condition. 
     On the other hand, when introducing a large number of bills, first, the bills to be introduced into the bill introducing portion  12  are gripped by the brush portions of the brush rollers  17  and the lower partition plates  21  as described above for storing a small number of bills, and are introduced into the bill introducing portion  12  in an upstanding condition. However, when the number of bills to be introduced is large, the distance between each lower partition plate  21  and the brush rollers  17  is, in some cases, not large enough to allow the bills to be introduced between the lower partition plate  21  and the brush rollers  17 . 
     Therefore, the lower partition plates  21  are of such a construction that these plate  21  can be rotated toward the receiving space  13 . And, when a large number of bills are introduced, the lower partition plates  21  are rotated, and by doing so, the bills can be introduced into the bill introducing portion  12 . At this time, the brush portions grip newly-introduced bills in cooperation not with the lower partition plates  21  but with the bills which have already been introduced in an upstanding condition in a sufficient amount that the bills will not fall toward the receiving space  13  even upon application of pressures from the brush portions. 
     Therefore, the lower partition plates  21  are disposed closer to the bill introducing portion  12  than the upper partition plate  23  is, and each lower partition plate  21  has its rotation axis disposed below the bottom surface of the guide  20 , and is normally held in a position, indicated in a solid line in FIG. 1, by a spring. The lower partition plate  21  can not be rotated beyond this position toward the bill introducing portion  12 , but can be rotated toward the receiving space  13 . 
     The lower partition plate  21  is inclined at its end portion toward the bill introducing mechanism  11 . The lower partition plate  21  may be inclined toward the bill introducing mechanism  11  over a region extending from its lower end to its upper end as shown in the drawings, but may be inclined only at its distal end portion. The height of the lower partition plate  21  is smaller than the height of minimum-size bills to be handled. 
     In this embodiment, there are provided the two lower partition plates  21  which are spaced from each other in the direction of the width of the entry cash receiving cassette  9 , that is, in the direction of the axis of the brush rollers  17 , and can be rotated independently of each other, and can deal with bills of various shapes such as a curled or folded bill. The lower partition plate  21  is provided at a position spaced from the position, where bills are introduced into the entry cash receiving cassette  9  by the bill introducing mechanism  11 , by a distance smaller than the shorter side of minimum-size bills to be handled by the bill recycling module  1 , and with this construction, bills can be held in an upstanding condition within the bill introducing portion  12 . When the brush roll  17  is rotated through a predetermined angle, the brush portion of the brush roller  17  is disposed in the vicinity of the lower partition plate  21  so that the bill can be held between the lower partition plate  21  and this brush portion. 
     During the transfer of bills to the bill introducing portion  12 , the upper partition plate  23  and the lower partition plates  21  serve as walls separating the bill introducing portion  12  from the receiving portion  13 , and bills in the receiving space  13  will not interfere with bills being transferred to the bill introducing portion  12 . 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the abutment rollers  16  and the brush rollers  17  which are disposed on the common axis. 
     In this embodiment, the two abutment rollers  16  are mounted on an axially-central portion of a metal shaft  25 , and are spaced a predetermined distance from each other. Each abutment roller  16  can rotate independently of the metal shaft  25 , for example, through a bearing (not shown) interposed between this roller and the metal shaft  25 . The plurality of brush rollers  17  are mounted on the metal shaft  25 , and are spaced from one another in the axial direction. Brushes of the brush roller  17  extend radially of the metal shaft  25 , and are circumferentially spaced at equal intervals. Two kinds of brushes, that is, loop-like brushes and sheet-like brushes, are provided. The brush rollers  17 , each comprising the brushes  26   a ,  26   b  and  26   c  each comprising a pair of loop-like and sheet-like members, are mounted on the axially-central portion of the metal shaft  25 , and the brush rollers  17 , each comprising the brushes  27   a ,  27   b  and  27   c  each comprising a sheet-like member, are mounted on opposite end portions of the meta shaft  25 . 
     The shape of the brushes is determined by their rigidity and friction coefficient. In this embodiment, although the loop-like brushes and the sheet-like brushes are used as described above, the shape and material of the brushes are not limited to those of this embodiment in so far as the necessary rigidity and friction coefficient are satisfied. 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the guide  20 . The guide  20  serves to guide bills, which are to be introduced into the entry cash receiving cassette, and also serves to support the lower edges of the bills in the bill introducing portion  12  and the receiving space  13 . The brush rollers  17  and the abutment rollers  16  are fitted into a groove  28  from the lower side of this guide  20 . A plurality of notches  29 , in which these rollers are fitted, are formed in the guide  20 . The size of each notch  29  is smaller than the length of the brushes  26   a ,  26   b  and  26   c  so that these brushes can partially project from the bottom surface  30  of the guide  20  when the brush roller rotates. At the bill introducing space region, the bottom surface  30  of the guide  20  is stepped as at  32  with respect to an apex  31  of the bill-introducing guide path to be disposed at a level lower than this apex  31 . The guide  20  has holes  33  in which the two abutment rollers  18  are fitted, respectively. The function of this step portion  32  will be described later. 
     Next, the operation for introducing bills into the entry cash receiving cassette  9  will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 5 to  7 . 
     For introducing bills into the entry cash receiving cassette  9 , the bill is fed between the receiving rollers  14  and the abutment rollers  16  from the bill transfer path  5 . Then, the bill is inserted between the lower receiving guides  15  and the brush rollers  17  which are kept stationary in staggered relation to these lower receiving guides  15 , and the bill is fed while subjected to a frictional resistance, and the when the gripping transfer force, produced by the receiving rollers  14  and the abutment rollers  16 , ceases to act on the bill, the bill is gripped by (held between) the lower receiving guides  15  and the brushes, and is once stopped at a position indicated by BL in FIG.  1 . 
     Then, when a second bill BL 2  to be introduced into the entry cash receiving cassette  9  passes past a predetermined position of the bill feeding path  5  or bill introducing mechanism  11 , this passage is detected by a sensor (not shown), and the brush rollers  17  are rotated in a predetermined amount, thereby canceling the application of the frictional resistance, and the bill BL 1 , gripped by the lower receiving guides  15  and the brushes  26   b , is moved toward the introducing space  12 , as shown in FIG.  5 . After the brush rollers  17  are rotated in the predetermined amount, the brushes  26   a  of the brush rollers are stopped in a rotational position where these brushes are in contact with the receiving guides or in a rotational position where the brushes overlap the receiving guides, in preparation for the subsequent bill BL 2 . The amount of rotation of the brush rollers  17  is not limited to a specified value, but in the construction of this embodiment in which each brush roller  17  has the three brushes, this rotation amount is set to 120° so that the subsequent brushes  26   b  for braking purposes can overlap the receiving guides. 
     At this time, the brushes  26   b , which together with the lower receiving guides  15 , have gripped the bill BL 1 , project from the bottom surface  30  of the guide  20 , and are stopped in the vicinity of the lower partition plates  21 . Therefore, the first bill BL 1 , first fed to the bill introducing portion  12 , is stored in an upstanding posture between the brushes  26   b  and the brushes  26   a  gripping the subsequent bill BL 2 . 
     Then, when a third bill BL 3 , which is to be subsequently fed to the cash entry receiving cassette  9 , passes past the above predetermined position, the brush rollers  17  are rotated, so that the brushes  26   a  are brought into contact with the first bill BL 1 , stored in the bill introducing portion  12 , and push this bill into engagement with a bill abutment surface portion of each lower partition plate  21 , as shown in FIG.  6 . At this time, the upper end portion of the abutment surface portion  21   a  of the lower partition plate  21  is inclined toward the bill introducing space, and a point (force-applying point)  34  of pressing contact of the brush  26   a  with the bill BL 1  is closer to the bottom surface  30  of the guide  20  than the upper end  21   b  of the bill abutment surface portion  21   a  is, and therefore the bill BL 1  is pivotally moved about the upper end  21   b  of the bill abutment surface portion  21   a  in such a manner that the upper edge of this bill BL 1  is moved in a direction of arrow B (FIG. 6) while the lower edge of the bill BL 1  is moved in a direction of arrow C. As a result, the bill BL 1  is held between (gripped by) each lower partition plate  21  and the brush  26   a  in such a manner that this bill is disposed in intimate contact with the entire surface of the bill abutment surface portion  21   a  in an inclined upstanding posture. 
     At this time, in the same manner described above for the first bill BL 1 , the secondly-introduced bill BL 2  is fed to the introducing space  12  by the brushes  26   c , and is stored in an upstanding posture between the projecting brushes  26   a  and the brushes  26   c  gripping the subsequent bill BL 3 . The third bill BL 3  is held between the brushes  26   c  and the lower receiving guides  15 , and is stopped in this condition. 
     When a fourth (or other subsequent) bill is to be introduced, the brush rollers are rotated, and the brushes  26   a  pass through the respective notches  29 , so that the gripping of the first bill BL 1  is once canceled, but this first bill BL 1  is again, together with the bill BL 2 , gripped by the brushes  26   c.    
     The bills are held (gripped) in the inclined upstanding posture within the bill introducing portion  12 , and therefore the bills are more effectively prevented from interfering with the subsequent bill which is being introduced into the entry cash receiving cassette  9  from the lower side thereof by the bill introducing mechanism  11 . 
     Namely, the interference of the bill, being introduced from the lower side, with the bills, gripped in the upstanding posture, occurs upon contact of the lower edges of the gripped bills with the bill being introduced, and therefore for spacing the lower edges of the gripped bills farther from the bill introducing port, it is more effective to grip the bills in an inclined upstanding posture. 
     As described above, the brush rollers  17  of this embodiment have part of the function of the introducing means, in which the brush rollers cooperate with the lower receiving guides  15  to hold the bill therebetween when introducing the bill into the entry cash receiving cassette  9 , the function of the feed means for feeding the introduced bill to the bill introducing portion  12  and for storing (stacking) these bills in the upstanding posture, and the function of the gripping means in which the brush rollers cooperate with the lower partition plates  21  to grip the bills introduced into the bill introducing portion  12 . 
     Therefore, even when bills BL 4 , having their right and left end portions curled toward the bill introducing mechanism  11 , are introduced as shown in FIG. 8, lower end portions of the bills BL 4  are held between (gripped by) the brushes and the lower partition plates  21  in the introducing space  12 , and are kept in an upstanding posture in the bill introducing portion  12 , and therefore these bills BL 4  are prevented from interfering with a subsequently-introduced bill BL 5  in the introducing space  12 . 
     When a large number of curled bills are introduced, the rigidity of the brushes  26   b,  in some cases, can not withstand the restoring force of the stack of curled bills BL 4  pressing the brushes, so that the brushes are much deformed, as shown in FIG.  9 . As a result, the brushes  26   b  are much deformed toward the bill-pushing position, which results in a possibility that the stack of curled bills BL 4  are not held between the lower partition plates  21  and the brushes  26   b.    
     In this case, when the right and left end portions of the curled bills reach the bill-introducing guide path  35  along which bills to be introduced are fed, the curled bills BL 4 , in some cases, project into the bill-introducing guide path  35  through the space between the adjacent brushes, and interfere with the bill BL 5 , fed to the bill-introducing guide path, thereby causing the residence of the bill, and as a result the trade is stopped. 
     Therefore, projection prevention means is provided for preventing the end portions of the bills, introduced into the bill introducing portion  12 , from projecting into the bill-introducing guide path  35 . 
     In this embodiment, the projection prevention means is provided by the step portion  32  which is formed on the guide  20  of the bill introducing portion  12 , and is disposed at a level lower than the apex  31  of the bill-introducing guide path  35 . Thanks to the provision of this step portion  32 , the right and left end portions of the curled bills BL 4  are prevented from projecting into the bill-introducing guide path  35 . Such a step portion may be formed by providing a protected portion. 
     Of course, even if the bill, which can not be gripped by the lower partition plate  21  and the brushes immediately after it is pushed out, is curled, the step portion  32  of the guide  20  serves as a prevention wall, and therefore can prevent the projection of this bill. 
     Thus, the bills are introduced one by one in such a manner that their lower edges are arranged neatly, and the lower end portions of the introduced bills are gripped by the gripping members, or the introducing space  12  is separated from the introducing transfer path by the step portion  32 , and by doing so, even those bills of different sizes, tending to be folded or curled, can be properly stacked in an upstanding posture in a limited small space. 
     In this embodiment, the gripping members also serve as the members (brushes) for feeding the bills, and therefore the cost can be reduced. Of course, even when gripping members for performing the gripping function are provided separately from such brushes, there is no problem from a functional point of view, 
     Next, the operation for transferring the bills from the bill introducing portion  12  to the receiving space  13  will be described with reference to FIG.  10 . 
     When the introduction of the bills (which are to be stored in the receiving space  13 ) into the bill introducing portion  12  is finished, a drive belt (not shown) is driven to advance the push plate  22  toward the receiving space  13 . When the push plate  22  advances to a position where it contacts the stack of bills to support the same, the upper partition plate  23  begins to be retracted toward the bill introducing portion  12  in synchronism with the push plate  22 . 
     When the push plate  22  further advances to push the stack of bills toward the receiving space  13 , the stack of bills gradually rotates the upper partition plate  23  and the lower partition plates  21  toward the receiving space  13 , and the push plate  22  moves while pushing the press plate  24  in the receiving space  24  and the bills BL 6 . 
     When the push plate  22  further advances into the receiving space  13 , the upper partition plate  23  is disengaged from the upper edges of the bills BL 6  while the lower partition plates  21  are disengaged from the lower end portions of the bills BL 6 , so that the upper partition plate  23  and the lower partition plates  21  are returned to their respective initial positions, and the bills BL 6  are stored in the receiving space  13 . 
     A step portion  36  (serving as projection prevention means) is provided at the boundary between the receiving space  13  and the guide  20  of the bill introducing portion  12 , so that the bottom surface of the receiving space  13  is disposed at a level lower than the bottom surface of the introducing space  12 . With this construction, the stored bills, tending to be folded or curled, are prevented from projecting into the introducing space  12 . If the stored bills BL 6  project as far as the lower partition plates  21 , the lower partition plates  21  are prevented from being rotated by the bills, pressed against these plates  21 , when the bills are introduced in a large amount into the introducing space  12 , and the introducing space  12  is kept narrow, so that the number of bills to be introduced thereinto is limited. The provision of the step portion  36  overcomes this disadvantage. 
     Although this embodiment is directed to the receiving cassette, the invention can be applied to the cash entry/discharge port  2  in which discharge bills are stacked. Description will be made of an example in which the invention is applied to the cash entry/discharge port  2 . Means, performing the same functions as those used in the receiving cassette, will be designated by the same names, respectively. 
     FIG. 11 shows the construction of the cash entry/discharge port  2 . A shutter  43 , which is opened and closed when putting bills into and out of the apparatus, is provided at an upper portion of the cash entry/discharge port  2 . Constituent members for separating entry bills from one another are provided at a lower portion of the cash entry/discharge port  2 , and these constituent member include separation rollers  37 , gate rollers  41 , transfer rollers  38 , and separate guides  40 . There are provided a front plate  39  and a partition plate  44  which presses the bill when separating the bills. 
     Constituent members for stacking the discharge bills include receiving rollers  47 , rotated by drive means (not shown), abutment rollers  49  and  52 , held against the receiving rollers  47  so as to be driven, a plurality of brush rollers  50 , which are disposed on an axis, on which the abutment rollers  52  are disposed, and are spaced from one another in the axial direction, and are intermittently driven by driven means (not shown) independently, receiving guides  48 , which are opposed to the brush rollers  50  in overlapping relation thereto, an introducing space  53  into which bills BL are introduced while being guided by the receiving guides  48 , abutment rollers  49  for transferring the bills to the cash entry/discharge port  2 , a guide  42  which guides the transferred bills, and serves as a stack surface for the bills, the partition plate  44  which forms, together with the receiving guides  48 , the introducing space  53 , and a top plate  45  provided at an upper portion of the introducing space  53 . 
     An operation for introducing the bills is the same as described above for the receiving cassette, and therefore explanation thereof will be omitted. The partition plate  44  serves also to feed entry bills toward the front plate  39 , and therefore can be moved by drive means (not shown), and when discharging bills, this partition plate  44  is moved to a position where brushes  51  of the brush rollers  50  contact it. As described above for the above embodiment, the bills BL, fed to the introducing space  53 , are stacked while gripped at their lower end portions by the partition plate  44  and the brushes  51 . Therefore, even lower edges of bills of different sizes are arranged nearly on the surface of the guide  42 , and therefore the bills can be gripped, and a large number of bills can be stacked in a limited small space. When the stacking operation is finished, a push plate  46 , provided at the rear side of the receiving guides  48 , moves to the introducing space  53 , and cooperates with the partition plate  44  to hold the bills BL therebetween, and in this condition the push plate  46  and the partition plate  44  move while gripping the bills BL, and then are stopped when the brushes  51  of the brush rollers are disengaged from the partition plate and the stacked bills, and the shutter  43  is opened, and after the operator takes all of these bills out of the cash entry/discharge port, the shutter  43  is closed, thus completing the cash-discharging operation. 
     As described above, in the embodiments of the present invention, a large number of bills of different sizes, tending to be folded or curled, can be positively stacked in an upstanding posture with the simple construction. 
     In the present invention, there can be provided the paper sheets and the like handling apparatus in which even when paper sheets and the like of different sizes, as well as paper sheets and the like tending to be folded or curled, are introduced in a large amount into the paper sheets and the like handling apparatus, these paper sheets and the like can be positively stored in an upstanding posture in a small space within the paper sheets and the like receiving cassette or the entry/discharge port (inlet/outlet port), and the receiving cassette or the entry/discharge port is highly-reliable and inexpensive, and is less liable to troubles such as residence of the paper sheets and the like.