Patent Publication Number: US-7708273-B2

Title: Paper sheet processing apparatus

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-276602 filed on Oct. 24, 2007, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a paper sheet processing apparatus including a paper sheet conveyance mechanism that conveys a paper sheet inserted from an insertion slot. 
     RELATED ART 
     For example, a paper sheet processing apparatuses that processes a paper sheet such as a bill is incorporated into a service providing device, such as a game medium lending machine installed in a game hall, a vending machine or a ticket-vending machine installed in the public space, or the like, that identifies the validity of a paper sheet (bill) inserted from an insertion slot by a user in a paper sheet identification part (a bill identification part or bill validator), and provides various types of products and services in accordance with a value of the paper sheet judged as valid. In such a paper sheet processing apparatus, as disclosed in Japanese patent application publication No. 2005-115811, for example, a paper sheet conveyance mechanism that conveys a paper sheet inserted into an insertion slot toward the paper sheet identification part is installed. 
     Typically, as disclosed in Japanese patent application publication No. 2005-115811, the paper sheet conveyance mechanism includes a pair of conveyor rollers that hold (or nip) an inserted paper sheet therebetween to convey it toward the downstream side, and when an entrance sensor installed in the back of the insertion slot detects the paper sheet insertion, the paper sheet conveyance mechanism drives the pair of conveyor rollers to hold (or nip) the paper sheet therebetween to convey it toward the inside of the apparatus. 
     Then, as described above, in a typical paper sheet processing apparatus, when a user inserts a paper sheet into an insertion slot, an entrance sensor installed at an insertion slot portion detects the insertion, and the paper sheet processing apparatus drives a pair of conveyor rollers so as to hold (or nip) the paper sheet therebetween on the downstream side to hold (or nip) the paper sheet therebetween and convey it toward the downstream side. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A paper sheet processing apparatus comprises: an insertion slot into which a paper sheet is inserted; a paper sheet conveyance mechanism for conveying the paper sheet inserted into the insertion slot; a paper sheet traveling route through which the paper sheet is conveyed by the paper sheet conveyance mechanism; a sensor for detecting the paper sheet existing in the paper sheet traveling route; a pair of contact members for holding the paper sheet inserted into the insertion slot; a driving source for moving one of the pair of contact members toward the other; and a control device for controlling driving of the driving source. Here, at least either of the pair of contact members is driven to convey the paper sheet by the paper sheet conveyance mechanism. And the control device controls the driving force to move the at least either of the pair of contact members such that the pair of contact members are kept apart from each other before the paper sheet is inserted into the insertion slot and that the pair of contact members become closer to each other so as to hold the paper sheet when the sensor detects that the paper sheet is inserted into the insertion slot. 
     Further features of the present invention, its nature, and various advantages will be more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following description of the preferred embodiment. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing an entire structure to illustrate a configuration of a paper sheet processing apparatus as a bill processing apparatus of an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view showing the paper sheet processing apparatus in a state where an open/close member is opened for a main body frame of an apparatus main body. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing a configuration of a power transmission part of the apparatus main body. 
         FIG. 4  is a right side view schematically showing a traveling route of a bill to be inserted from an insertion slot. 
         FIG. 5  is a left side view showing a schematic configuration of a driving source and a driving force transmission mechanism to drive a bill conveyance mechanism. 
         FIG. 6A  is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the driving force transmission mechanism to drive a presser plate installed in a bill stacker. 
         FIG. 6B  is a partial enlarged diagram showing a schematic configuration of a bent portion shown in  FIG. 6A . 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view showing an interior configuration of an open/close member installed in a main body frame. 
         FIG. 8  is a back view showing an arrangement of a cam member and a driving source shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view showing an arrangement of a cam member and a driving source shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         FIG. 10  is a side view showing a state where a pair of contact members are separated apart. 
         FIG. 11  is a side view showing a state where a bill is nipped with a pair of contact members. 
         FIG. 12  is a diagram showing a configuration of control means for controlling drives of a bill conveyance mechanism, bill reading means, and a contact member driving mechanism. 
         FIG. 13  shows a flowchart (part one) illustrating processing operations for processing a bill in a bill processing apparatus of this embodiment. 
         FIG. 14  shows a flowchart (part two) illustrating processing operations for processing a bill in a bill processing apparatus of this embodiment. 
         FIG. 15  shows a flowchart (part three) illustrating processing operations for processing a bill in a bill processing apparatus of this embodiment. 
         FIG. 16  shows a flowchart illustrating processing operations of a nipping process of a pair of rollers. 
         FIG. 17  shows a flowchart illustrating processing operations of a releasing process of a pair of rollers. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiment which will be described in detail, a paper sheet or the like may be treated and described as a bill. Therefore, in the following description of the embodiment, a “paper sheet” will be described as a “bill” and a “paper sheet processing apparatus” will be described as a “bill processing apparatus.” Therefore, the “paper sheet” generally includes the “bill” such that the paper sheet processing device includes the bill processing device. 
       FIGS. 1 to 6A  are diagrams showing a configuration of a paper sheet processing apparatus as a bill processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.  FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing the entire structure.  FIG. 2  is a perspective view showing a state in which an open/close member is opened for a main body frame of an apparatus main body.  FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing a structure of a power transmission part of the apparatus main body.  FIG. 4  is a right side view schematically showing a traveling route for a bill to be inserted from an insertion slot.  FIG. 5  is a left side view showing a schematic structure of a driving source and a driving force transmission mechanism to drive a bill conveyance mechanism.  FIG. 6A  is a diagram showing a schematic structure of a driving force transmission mechanism to drive a presser plate installed in a bill housing part. 
     A bill processing apparatus  1  of this embodiment is configured to be incorporable into, for example, various types of game machines such as slot machines, and the bill processing apparatus  1  includes an apparatus main body  2  and a bill housing part (e.g., bill stacker or cashbox)  100  which is provided on the apparatus main body  2 , and is capable of laminating and housing a great number of bills. In this case, the bill housing part  100 , which has a function as a cashbox or safe, may be removable from the apparatus main body  2 , and for example, in a state in which an unillustrated lock mechanism is released, the bill housing part  100  can be detached, in this embodiment, from the apparatus main body  2  by pulling a handle  101  provided on the front face thereof. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the apparatus main body  2  has a main body frame  2 A and an open/close member  2 B configured to be opened and closed with its one end as a rotating center with respect to the main body frame  2 A. Then, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the main body frame  2 A and the open/close member  2 B are configured to form a space (bill traveling route)  3  through which a bill is carried at a portion at which both face each other when the open/close member  2 B is closed with respect to the main body frame  2 A, and to form a bill insertion slot  5  so as to correspond to the bill traveling route  3  at the front face exposed side of both. In addition, the bill insertion slot  5  is a slit-like opening from which a short side of a bill can be inserted into the inside of the apparatus main body  2 . 
     The bill traveling route  3  is formed by the main body frame  2 A and an open/close member  2 B as described above, and in the present embodiment, the bill traveling route  3  is constituted of a first traveling route  3 A provided so as to be connected to the bill insertion slot  5 , and a second traveling route  3 B extending toward the downstream side from the first traveling route  3 A. 
     The first traveling route  3 A is formed in a region in which a pair of contact members to be described later is arranged, the pair of contact members comprising a pair of rollers to be described later. The first traveling route  3 A is a portion into which a bill is inserted by an operator. Further, the second traveling route  3 B is formed on a downstream side from the leading end position at which a skew correction mechanism  10  to be described later is arranged. 
     Then, as shown in  FIG. 6A , a length L 1  in a bill thickness direction of the first traveling route  3 A is set to be longer than a length L 2  in a bill thickness direction of the second traveling route  3 B. Further, a joint portion of the first traveling route  3 A and the second traveling route  3 B is bent by a predetermined angle (the bent portion is denoted by a reference symbol of  3 D). Here, the bent portion  3 D may be arranged at any position on the upstream side of bill reading means  8  (e.g., bill reading device) to be described later. 
       FIG. 6B  is a partial enlarged view of a bent portion  3 D as shown in  FIG. 6A . As described above, the first traveling route  3 A and the second traveling route  3 B are jointed with a crossing angle of α such that the bill or a thin rigid plate is prevented from passing through the traveling route as the distance from the insertion slot  5  to the bent portion is longer and the height L 1  of the traveling route is smaller such that it is difficult to pass beyond the joint portion. 
     More specifically, if the height at the bent portion  3 D of the boundary between the first traveling route  3 A and the second traveling route  3 B is given by H, a straightened bill (paper money) can go beyond the bent portion  3 D by the length of L=H/tan(α), provided that the thickness of the bill is negligible and the bill is not inserted in an inclined manner by utilizing the height of the first traveling route  3 A. Therefore, it is preferable that the distance from the bent portion  3 D to the bill reading means  8  is made equal to or longer than twice of L. On safer side, it is preferable that the distance from the bent portion  3 D to the bill reading means  8  is made equal to or longer than three times of L. However, if it is too long, the apparatus tends to be big such that the distance may be adjusted for the purpose. 
     As a matter of course, the bill traveling route  3  may have a constant length in the paper sheet thickness direction along the bill traveling direction, and may not have such a bent portion therein. 
     In the apparatus main body  2 , a pair of contact members ( 14 A and  14 B) to hold (or nip) a bill inserted from the bill insertion slot  5  therebetween, a contact member driving mechanism  70  to move the pair of contact members apart or close with each other so as to hold (or nip) the bill therebetween, a bill conveyance mechanism  6  to convey the bill, an insertion detecting sensor  7  to detect the bill having been inserted into the bill insertion slot  5 , the bill reading means  8  (including a bill reading device) installed on a downstream side of the insertion detecting sensor  7 , which reads information from the bill in a traveling state, the skew correction mechanism  10  to accurately position and convey the bill to the bill reading means  8 , a movable piece passage detecting sensor  12  to detect the bill passing through movable pieces constituting the skew correction mechanism  10 , and control means  200 , which includes a control device, (e.g., control circuit board  200 A; refer to  FIG. 12 ) for controlling the drives of the contact member driving mechanism  70 , the bill conveyance mechanism  6 , the bill reading means  8 , and the skew correction mechanism  10  are provided. 
     Hereinafter, the aforementioned respective components will be described below in detail. 
     As described above, the bill traveling route  3  extends from the bill insertion slot  5  toward the inside and comprises the first traveling route  3 A and the second traveling route  3 B. On the downstream side of the second traveling route  3 B, it is bent so as to be inclined downward such that the route is eventually bent in the vertical direction. A discharge slot  3   a  from which the bill is discharged to the bill housing part  100  is formed in the second bill traveling route  3 B, and the bill discharged therefrom is fed into a feed port (acceptance port)  103  of the bill housing part  100  in the vertical direction. 
     The pair of contact members may be configured to be capable of holding (or nipping) and conveying an inserted bill therebetween, and moving apart from each other. And in the present embodiment, the pair of contact members comprises a pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B). Then, the roller  14 A of the pair of rollers which is arranged on the upper side is driven to become close to or apart from the other roller  14 B which is arranged on the lower side by the contact member driving mechanism  70  to be described later, and the roller  14 B arranged on the lower side is driven to rotate so as to convey the bill. In this case, the roller  14 B is driven to rotate together with the conveyor roller arranged along the bill traveling route  3  by the bill conveyance mechanism  6 . 
     The bill conveyance mechanism  6  is a mechanism capable of carrying a bill inserted from the bill insertion slot  5  along the inserting direction, and of feedback-carrying a bill in an inserted state toward the bill insertion slot  5 . The bill conveyance mechanism  6  includes a motor  13  (refer to  FIG. 5 ) serving as a driving source installed in the apparatus main body  2 , and conveyor roller pairs ( 15 A and  15 B), ( 16 A and  16 B), and ( 17 A and  17 B) which are installed at predetermined intervals along the bill traveling direction in the bill traveling route  3 , and are driven to rotate by the motor  13 . 
     The conveyor roller pairs are installed so as to be partially exposed to the bill traveling route  3 , and all the pairs are rollers in which the conveyor rollers  15 B,  16 B, and  17 B installed on the underside of the bill traveling route  3  are driven by the motor  13 , and the conveyor rollers  15 A,  16 A, and  17 A installed on the upper side are pinch-rollers driven according to these rollers. 
     In addition, the conveyor roller pair ( 14 A and  14 B) as the contact members that first hold (or nip) a bill inserted from the bill insertion slot  5  therebetween, to carry it to the back side is, as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , installed at one place at the center position of the bill traveling route  3 , and the conveyor roller pairs ( 15 A and  15 B), ( 16 A and  16 B), and ( 17 A and  17 B) which are disposed in the order at the downstream side thereof are respectively disposed at two places with predetermined intervals along the width direction of the bill traveling route  3 . 
     Further, with regard to the roller pair ( 14 A and  14 B), the upper roller  14 A is normally set in a state where it is spaced from the lower roller  14 B. When an insertion of the bill is detected by the insertion detecting sensor  7 , the upper roller  14 A is driven toward the lower conveyor roller  14 B by the contact member driving mechanism  70  to hold (or nip) the inserted bill therebetween. 
     Then, when a process for eliminating skew of an inserted bill and positioning the bill with respect to the bill reading means  8  (skew correction process) is executed by the skew correction mechanism, the upper conveyor roller  14 A is spaced from the lower conveyor roller  14 B to release the load on the bill, and when the skew correction process is completed, the upper conveyor roller  14 A is driven to move toward the lower conveyor roller  14 B again to hold (or nip) the bill therebetween. The skew correction mechanism  10  comprises a pair of right and left movable pieces  10 A (only one side is shown) that eliminates skew, and drives a motor  40  for skew driving mechanism to perform a skew eliminating process. 
     The conveyor rollers  15 B,  16 B, and  17 B installed on the underside of the bill traveling route  3  and the lower conveyor roller  14 B constituting the contact members are, as shown in  FIG. 5 , driven to rotate by the motor  13  and pulleys  15 C,  16 C,  17 C, and  14 C installed at the ends of the driving shafts of the respective conveyor rollers. That is, a driving pulley  13 A is installed on the output shaft of the motor  13 , and a driving belt  13 B is wrapped around the pulleys  15 C,  16 C,  17 C, and  14 C installed at the ends of the driving shafts of the respective conveyor rollers as well as around the driving pulley  13 A. In addition, tension pulleys are engaged at appropriate positions with the driving belt  13 B, which prevents it from loosening. 
     In accordance with the structure described above, when the motor  13  is driven to normally rotate, the conveyor rollers  15 B,  16 B, and  17 B and the roller  14 B are driven to normally rotate in synchronization therewith to convey the bill toward the insertion direction. When the motor  13  is driven to reversely rotate, the conveyor rollers  15 B,  16 B, and  17 B and the roller  14 B are driven to reversely rotate in synchronization therewith to convey the bill toward the bill insertion slot  5  side. 
     The insertion detecting sensor  7  is to generate a sensed signal when a bill inserted into the bill insertion slot  5  is sensed. In the present embodiment, the pair of conveyor roller ( 14 A and  14 B) is installed between the bill insertion slot  5  and the insertion detecting sensor  7 . In this case, the insertion detecting sensor  7  is constituted of, for example, an optical sensor such as a regressive reflection type photo sensor. However, the insertion detecting sensor  7  may be constituted of a mechanical sensor other than an optical sensor. 
     Further, the movable piece passage detecting sensor  12  is to generate a sensed signal when it is sensed that a front end of the bill passes between a pair of left and right movable pieces constituting the skew correction mechanism  10 , and the movable piece passage detecting sensor  12  is installed on the upstream side of the bill reading means (or bill reading device)  8 . The movable piece passage detecting sensor  12  is also constituted of an optical sensor or a mechanical sensor in the same way as the aforementioned insertion detecting sensor. 
     The bill reading means  8  reads bill information on the bill carried in a state in which the skew is eliminated by the skew correction mechanism  10  (and the bill is accurately positioned), and judges validity (authenticity) thereof. In detail, for example, the bill reading means  8  may be constituted of a line sensor that performs reading of the bill such that the bill to be carried is irradiated with light on both sides, and transmitted light therethrough and reflected light therefrom are detected by a light receiving element. The line sensor is shown in the drawing, and an optical signal read by the line sensor is photoelectric-converted, and the signal is compared and checked with data of a legitimate bill stored in advance, which makes it possible to identify the authenticity of the bill to be carried. 
     The bill housing part  100  that houses bills is configured so as to be removable from the apparatus main body  2 , and stacks and houses bills identified as being genuine (or legitimate) by the bill reading means  8  one after another. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 4 and 6A , a main body frame  100 A constituting the bill housing part  100  is formed into a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a placing plate  105  on which bills to be fed via the feed port  103  are stacked one after another, and a biasing means (biasing spring)  106  that pushes (or biases) the placing plate  105  toward a presser plate  115  which will be described later are provided inside the main body frame  100 A. 
     In the main body frame  100 A, a press holding part  108  that holds and has a bill wait as it is, the bill being to be dropped, is provided so as to be continued from the feed port  103 . A pair of regulatory walls (only either of them is illustrated in  FIG. 4 , and the walls are omitted in  FIG. 6A )  110  is disposed so as to extend in the vertical direction on both sides of the press holding part  108  on the placing plate side. The pair of regulatory walls  110  serves to contact both sides of an uppermost bill to stably hold the bills to be stacked when bills are placed one after another on the placing plate  105  and the placing plate  105  is biased by the biasing means  106 . 
     Further, the presser plate  115  that presses bills dropping into the press holding part  108  from the feed port  103  toward the placing plate  105  is installed in the main body frame  100 A. The presser plate  115  is formed in a size to be capable of passing through a space between the pair of regulatory walls  110 , and gets into the space to be driven to reciprocate between a position at which the bills are pressed against the placing plate  105  (a pressing position) and another position at which the press holding part  108  is opened (an initial position). 
     As shown in  FIGS. 4 and 6A , the presser plate  115  is driven to reciprocate as described above by a presser plate driving mechanism  120  installed in the main body frame  100 A. The presser plate driving mechanism  120  includes a pair of link members  115   a  and  115   b , both ends of which are supported pivotally by the presser plate, so as to allow the presser plate  115  to reciprocate in an arrow A direction, and these link members  115   a  and  115   b  are connected at the respective center positions in an X-shaped configuration such that the respective ends opposite to each other are supported pivotally by a movable member  122  installed to be movable in a vertical direction (an arrow B direction). A rack is formed in the movable member  122 , and a pinion  124 A constituting the presser plate driving mechanism  120  is engaged with the rack. 
     In addition, as shown in  FIG. 6A , a housing part side gear train  124  constituting the presser plate driving mechanism  120  is connected to the pinion  124 A. In this case, in the present embodiment, as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 6A , a driving source (motor  20 ) and a main body side gear train  21  sequentially engaged with the motor  20  are installed in the apparatus main body  2 , and when the bill housing part  100  is mounted on the apparatus main body  2 , the main body side gear train  21  is connected to the housing part side gear train  124 . That is, the presser plate  115  is driven to reciprocate in the arrow A directions by the motor  20  provided in the apparatus main body  2  by the presser plate driving mechanism  120  (link members  115   a  and  115   b , the movable member  122 , and the housing part side gear train  124 ) and the main body side gear train  21 . 
     Next, the configuration of the above-described pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) as the contact members and the contact member driving mechanism  70  will be described with reference to  FIGS. 7 to 11 . 
     With respect to these figures,  FIG. 7  is a perspective view showing an interior configuration of an open/close member arranged to the main frame,  FIG. 8  is a back view showing a configuration of a cam member and a driving source as shown in  FIG. 7 ,  FIG. 9  is a perspective view showing a configuration of the cam member and the driving source as shown in  FIG. 7 ,  FIG. 10  is a side view showing a state where the pair of contact members are spaced apart, and  FIG. 11  is a side view showing a state where the bill is held (or nipped) by the pair of contact members. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , the upper roller  14 A as a contact member of the aforementioned pair of contact members and the contact member driving mechanism  70  that drives the roller  14 A to become close to or apart from the lower roller  14 B as the other contact member are installed inside the open/close member  2 B. 
     The contact member driving mechanism  70  includes a motor  71  serving as a driving source, and a cylindrical cam member  72  which is arranged next to the motor  71  and supported rotatably. An output gear  71   a  is fixed to the output shaft of the motor  71 , and the output gear  71   a  is, as shown in  FIG. 8 , connected to an input gear  72   a  integrally fixed to the cam member  72  via a gear train  71 G. Therefore, the cam member  72  is driven to rotate normally/reversely via the gear train  71 G by the rotational driving of the motor  71 . Here, a groove (grooved cam)  72   b  is formed spirally in the outer circumferential surface of the cam member  72 . 
     Further, a spindle (or main shaft)  73  extending in a direction perpendicular to the bill traveling direction is provided at the bill insertion slot side at a frame  2 F of the open/close member  2 B. An arm  75  extending toward the bill insertion slot side is supported rotatably at the substantially center of the spindle  73 , and the roller  14 A is supported rotatably at the leading end thereof. Then, a pair of swing members  76  and  77  are supported with respect to the spindle  73  on both sides of the arm  75  so as to rotate the arm  75  centering on the spindle  73 . 
     The pair of swing members  76  and  77  extends toward the side of the cam member  72 , and protrusions  76   a  and  77   a  engaged with the groove  72   b  are formed in the ends of the swing members  76  and  77 . Therefore, when the cam member  72  is driven to rotate by the rotational driving of the motor  71 , the swing members  76  and  77  are swung in the up-and-down direction in synchronization therewith, and as shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11 , the arm  75 , i.e., the roller  14 A can be driven in the vertical direction. In this case, the rotary torque of the motor  71  is used for driving the cam member  72  connected to the gear train  71 G as described above to rotate, and move the pair of swing members  76  and  77  up and down via the protrusions  76   a  and  76   b  engaged with the groove  72   b  formed in the outer circumferential surface of the cam member, to move the arm  75 , i.e., the roller  14 A up and down. Therefore, even when an attempt to move the roller  14 A up and down is made for illicit purposes or the like, the swing members are difficult to swing because of the engagement with the cam, and the force is not transmitted to the motor  71 , which makes it possible to effectively prevent the motor serving as the driving source from being broken and the like. 
     A detecting piece  76   b  to detect a position of the roller  14 A, more specifically, that the roller  14 A is close to the roller  14 B so as to reach the position for holding (or nipping) a bill therebetween is formed to the swing member  76  as one of the pair of swing members. The detecting piece  76   b  moves in the up-and-down direction according to the swinging of the swing member  76 , and when the roller  14 A gets close to the roller  14 B so as to hold (or nip) a bill therebetween, the state is detected by an optical sensor (a roller detecting sensor)  78  shown in  FIG. 7 . Here, the configuration of the detecting means that detects a position of the roller  14 A is not limited to such configuration, but may be appropriately modified within the scope. 
     Further, a spring (constituted of a torsion coil spring)  79  that biases the arm  75 , i.e., the roller  14 A toward the roller  14 B is installed between the arm  75  and the swing member  76 . In this way, by installing the spring  79 , as shown in  FIG. 11 , when the roller  14 A moves so as to slidingly contact an inserted bill M, which moves so as to contact the other roller  14 B, the roller  14 A presses the bill M with biasing force of the spring  79 , and is capable of being spaced from the roller  14 B against the biasing force of the spring  79 . Therefore, the roller  14 A is capable of slidingly contacting the bill M with appropriate biasing force. 
     Here, the contact member driving mechanism  70  may comprise a solenoid or the like as a driving source that drives the roller  14 A. However, by using a motor capable of rotating normally and reversely, it is possible to control the roller  14 A to become close to and apart from the roller  14 B by the motor rotating normally and reversely. That is, by configuring the driving source with the motor, it suffices to control the driving of the motor  71  to stop at a position such that the pair of contact members become close to each other so as to hold (or nip) the bill therebetween and at another position such that the pair of contact members become apart from each other, which saves unnecessary electrical power for controlling the contact member to be moved. Further, an attempt can be made to make the motor silent as compared with a solenoid. 
     Next, the control means (or control device) that controls the driving of the bill conveyance mechanism  6 , the bill reading means  8 , and the contact member driving mechanism  70  will be described with reference to  FIG. 12 . 
     The control means  200  includes a control circuit board  200 A that controls the operation of the respective drive units described above, and a CPU (Central Processing Unit)  210  constituting bill identification means, a ROM (Read Only Memory)  212 , a RAM (Random Access Memory)  214 , and a reference data storage part  216  are mounted on the control circuit board. 
     In the ROM  212 , various types of programs such as operation programs for the respective types of drive units such as the motor  13  that drives the above-described bill conveyance mechanism, the motor  20  that drives the presser plate, the roller driving motor  71  that drives the conveyor roller  14 A as a part of the pair of rollers to come close to/to be spaced apart from the conveyor roller  14 B, and the motor  40  that drives the skew driving mechanism  10  and an authenticity judgment program for identifying the bill that is read by the bill reading means  8 ; and permanent data are stored. The CPU  210  generates control signals according to the programs stored in the ROM  212 , and carries out input and output of the signals to and from the respective drive units via an I/O port  220 , in order to control the driving of the respective drive units. 
     Further, sensed signals from the insertion detecting sensor  7 , the movable piece passage detecting sensor  12 , and the roller detecting sensor  78  are input into the CPU  210  via the I/O port  220 , and the driving control of the respective drive units is preformed on the basis of these sensed signals. 
     Further, data and programs used for the CPU  210  to operate are stored in the RAM  214 , and reference data used for performing a bill authenticity judgment, for example, various types of data acquired from all the printed areas in the legitimate bill (for example, data about contrast and data about transmitted light and reflected light when the bill is irradiated with infrared ray) are stored as reference data in the reference data storage part  216 . In addition, the reference data is stored in a dedicated reference data storage part  216 . However, the data may be stored in the ROM  212 . 
     Then, a bill reading detection sensor (for example, a line sensor)  80  constituting the above-described bill reading means  8  is connected to the CPU  210  via the I/O port  220 , and bill reading data read by the bill reading detection sensor  80  is compared with the reference data stored in the reference data storage part  216 , which allows a bill authenticity judgment process to be executed. 
     In addition, the control means  200  that controls the operation of the bill processing apparatus is mounted on one control circuit board  200 A. However, the control means  200  may be arranged in a dispersive manner on separate control circuit boards in accordance with respective functions thereof. 
     Next, the bill processing operation in the bill processing apparatus  1  executed by the control means  200  will be described in reference to the flowcharts of  FIGS. 13 to 17 . 
     When an operator inserts a bill into the bill insertion slot  5 , the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) installed between the bill insertion slot  5  and the insertion detecting sensor  7  is in a state where the rollers are apart from each other as in an initial state (refer to ST 22  and ST 54  which will be described later). 
     Further, as described above, the bill traveling route  3  formed continuously from the bill insertion slot  5  is constituted of the first traveling route  3 A and the second traveling route  3 B, and as shown in  FIG. 6A , the length L 1  in the bill thickness direction of the first traveling route  3 A is set to be longer than the length L 2  in the bill thickness direction of the second traveling route  3 B. In this way, because the above-described pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) is in a spaced state even when the length in the bill thickness direction on the upstream side of the bill traveling route  3  is set to be longer, it is easy to insert a bill from the bill insertion slot  5 , and because the length L 2  in the bill thickness direction is set to be shorter on the downstream side (the second traveling route  3 B), it is possible to effectively prevent foreign matter from invading the inside of the apparatus from the bill insertion slot  5 . 
     Moreover, as shown in  FIG. 6A , because the bill traveling route  3  is arranged to be bent at the bent portion  3 D on the upstream side from the bill reading detecting sensor (line sensor)  80  that identifies the authenticity of the paper sheet, even if a thin rigid member such as a ruler is inserted into the bill traveling route by way of vandalization or fraudulent activity, the member cannot be inserted beyond the bent portion  3 D, which makes it possible to effectively prevent the important components such as the bill reading detecting sensor  80  from being tampered. 
     Then, when the operator inserts a bill and the insertion of the bill is detected by the insertion detecting sensor  7  (ST 01 ) in a state where the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) is in a spaced state as described above, a holding process by the pair of rollers is executed (ST 02 ). 
     The holding process by the pair of rollers is executed in accordance with the procedure shown in  FIG. 16 . That is, the motor  71  for driving the rollers is driven to rotate normally (ST 61 ), to move the upper roller  14 A toward the lower roller  14 B by the cam member  72  and the pair of swing members  76  and  77 , and when the roller detecting sensor  78  detects the detecting piece  76   b , the motor  71  for driving the rollers is stopped (ST 62 , ST 63 ). 
     In accordance therewith, the inserted bill is held between the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) as shown in  FIG. 11 . When the operator inserts the bill into the insertion slot  5 , the roller  14 A is moved to the other roller  14 B to hold (or nip) the bill therebetween after it is confirmed by the insertion detecting sensor  7  that the bill is inserted in the bill traveling route  3 . Because the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) are spaced therebetween until the existence of the bill is detected, the bill can be surely inserted between the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) even if the bill is folded, twisted, or wrinkled. Thereafter, by moving the roller  14 A as a part of the pair of rollers toward the other, the bill is held (or nipped) between the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B), which achieves reliable conveyance. 
     Here, since the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) are installed between the bill insertion slot  5  and the insertion detecting sensor  7 , the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B) is in a spaced state until the operator inserts the bill into the bill insertion slot and the bill passes through the position of the pair of rollers. Therefore, the bill can be inserted more smoothly. 
     When the bill is held (or nipped) between the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B), the bill conveyor motor  13  is driven to rotate normally (ST 03 ). The bill is conveyed toward the inside of the apparatus by the pair of rollers ( 14 A and  14 B), and when the movable piece passage detecting sensor  12  disposed on the downstream side from the skew correction mechanism  10  detects the leading end of the bill, the bill conveyor motor is stopped (ST 04 , ST 05 ). At this time, the bill is located between the pair of movable pieces  10 A constituting the skew correction mechanism  10 . 
     Next, a spacing process of the pair of rollers is executed (ST 06 ). The spacing process of the pair of rollers is executed in accordance with the procedure shown in  FIG. 17 . That is, the motor  71  for driving the rollers is driven to rotate reversely (ST 71 ), to move the upper roller  14 A so as to be apart from the lower roller  14 B by the cam member  72  and the pair of swing members  76  and  77 , and when the roller detecting sensor  78  detects that the detecting piece  76   b  is separated, the motor  71  for driving the rollers is stopped (ST 72 , ST 73 ). By this operation, the roller  14 A is spaced from the roller  14 B such that no load is applied to the bill. 
     Then, a skew correction operating process is executed in this state (ST 07 ). The skew correction operating process is achieved by driving the motor  40  for the skew correction mechanism to rotate normally to drive the pair of movable pieces  10 A to become close to each other. That is, the bill is moved so as to be positioned in the center by the movable pieces  10 A contacting both sides of the bill, and its skew is corrected thereby, and the bill is positioned at the accurate center position. 
     When the skew correction operating process as described above is completed, next, a skew correction canceling process is executed (ST 08 ). This process is executed by moving the pair of moveable pieces  10 A apart from each other by making the motor  40  for the above-mentioned skew correction mechanism driven to rotate reversely such that the pair of moveable pieces  10 A are moved apart. 
     Next, the roller pair holding processes (ST 61 -ST 63 ) are executed such that the roller  14 A is moved so as to contact the roller  14 B such that the bill is held (or nipped) by the pair of rollers ( 14 A,  14 B) (ST 09 ). Thereafter, the bill conveyor motor  13  is driven to normally rotate to convey the bill toward the inside of the apparatus, and when the bill passes through the bill reading means  8 , a bill reading process is executed (ST 10  and ST 11 ). 
     Then, when the carried bill passes the bill reading means  8  and the bill reading means  8  reads the data up to the back end of the bill, the bill conveyor motor  13  is driven by a predetermined amount so as to stop the bill at a predetermined position (an escrow position; a position at which the bill is conveyed toward the downstream by 13 mm from the center position of the bill reading means  8 ), and at this time, a bill authenticity judgment process is executed in the control means  200  (ST 12  to ST 15 ). 
     In the bill authenticity judgment process at ST 15  described above, when the bill is judged as a legitimate bill (ST 16 ; Yes), an input from the operator is received (ST 17 ). This input corresponds to an acceptance operation in which the operator presses an acceptance button in order to accept provision of service (for example, an acceptance process according to the start of a game in a case of a gaming unit), and a process in which the operator presses a return button in order to execute a process for returning the inserted bill. 
     Then, when an operation to accept the provision of various types of services is input (ST 18 ; Yes), the bill conveyor motor  13  is driven to normally rotate to convey the bill toward the bill housing part  100  (ST 19 ). Thereafter, when it is sensed that the bill is transferred to the bill housing part  100  (transferred to the press holding part  108  through the feed port  103 ) (ST 20 ), the driving to normally rotate the above-described bill conveyor motor  13  is stopped (ST 21 ) as well as the spacing process of the pair of rollers is executed (ST 22 , ST 71 -ST 73 ), and the series of processes is completed. 
     Also, in the process of ST 16 , when the bill is judged as a non-legitimate bill (ST 16 ; No) or the operator presses the return button (ST 17 ; No), the bill conveyor motor  13  is driven to rotate reversely such that the bill staying at the escrow position is conveyed toward the bill insertion slot  5  (ST 51 ). Then, when the insertion detecting sensor  7  detects the back end of the bill returned toward the bill insertion slot  5  (ST 52 ; Yes), the reverse rotation of the bill conveyor motor  13  is stopped (ST 53 ) and the roller pair moving apart process is executed (ST 54 , ST 71 -ST 73 ) such that the pair of rollers holding the bill are moved apart, and the series of processes are completed. 
     The embodiment of the present invention has been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be implemented. In the above-described embodiment, the pair of contact members installed in the vicinity of the bill insertion slot  5  to hold the bill therebetween has been described as the roller pair ( 14 A and  14 B). However, the pair of contact members may be appropriately modified such that one of the contact members may be a roller member and the other may be a belt member as well as both may be belt members. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the lower roller  14 B is configured to be driven to rotate. However, the upper roller  14 A may be configured to be driven to rotate. 
     Moreover, the driving source that drives the various types of driving members or the mechanism for transmitting power from the driving source have been merely shown as examples, and modifications thereof can be appropriately made. 
     The paper sheet processing apparatus of the present invention is not limited to the above-described paper sheet processing apparatus, and may be incorporated into various types of apparatuses that process sheet-like members such as papers or cards other than bills. 
     In the paper sheet processing apparatus of the present embodiment, the following features may also be incorporated. 
     When a user inserts a folded or twisted paper sheet into the insertion slot of a paper sheet processing apparatus, height (or thickness) of the paper sheet insertion slot may be shorter than a thickness of the folded or twisted paper sheet such that the paper sheet may not be able to be drawn into the inside of the apparatus. Therefore, the paper sheet processing apparatus may not be able to convey the bill toward the paper sheet identification part. 
     In the present embodiment, even if a heavily damaged paper sheet may be conveyed toward the inside of the paper sheet processing device. 
     A paper sheet processing apparatus according to this embodiment comprises: an insertion slot into which a paper sheet is inserted, a paper sheet conveyance mechanism which conveys the paper sheet inserted into the insertion slot, a paper sheet traveling route through which the paper sheet is conveyed to move by the paper sheet conveyance mechanism, a sensor which detects the paper sheet existence in the paper sheet traveling route, a pair of contact members which holds the paper sheet inserted into the insertion slot therebetween, a driving source which moves one of the pair of contact members toward the other contact member, and a control device which controls the driving of the driving source. And in the paper sheet processing apparatus, either of the pair of contact members is driven to convey the paper sheet by the paper sheet conveyance mechanism. The control device keeps the pair of contact members apart until the paper sheet is inserted into the insertion slot. When the paper sheet is inserted into the insertion slot and the existence of the paper sheet in the paper sheet traveling route is detected by the sensor, the control device controls one of the pair of contact members to move toward the other so as to hold (or nip) the paper sheet therebetween. 
     In accordance with the paper sheet processing apparatus having the above-described configuration, when the user inserts the paper sheet into the insertion slot, one of the pair of contact members is moved toward the other contact member so as to hold the paper sheet between the pair of contact members after the existence of the paper sheet in the paper sheet traveling route is confirmed by the sensor. That is, since the pair of contact members is spaced therebetween until the existence of the paper sheet is detected, even if the paper sheet inserted into the insertion slot is folded, twisted, or wrinkled, the paper sheet can be surely inserted into the pair of contact members, and thereafter, when one contact member moves toward the other contact member, the paper sheet is held between the contact members, which achieves reliable conveyance. 
     Further, the pair of contact members are installed inside the insertion slot, but outer than the paper sheet detecting sensor. 
     In such configuration, until a paper sheet is inserted into an insertion slot and the paper sheet passes through the position of the pair of contact members to be inserted, the pair of contact members are kept apart from each other such that the paper sheet can be inserted more smoothly. 
     Further, the paper sheet traveling route comprises a first traveling route provided so as to be connected to the insertion slot, and a second traveling route extending from the other end of the first traveling route, and height of the first traveling route is set to be higher than that of the second traveling route. 
     In such configuration, it is easy to insert the paper sheet from the insertion slot even if the height of the bill traveling route on the upstream side is set to be larger since the pair of contact members are spaced therebetween. Further, such configuration can effectively prevent foreign matter from invading the inside of the apparatus from the insertion slot since the height of the bill traveling route is set to be shorter on the downstream side. 
     Further, a paper sheet identification part that identifies the authenticity of a paper sheet is provided in the paper sheet traveling route. And the paper sheet traveling route is bent on the upstream side from the paper sheet identification part. 
     In such configuration, even if a thin rigid member such as a ruler is inserted into the paper sheet traveling route by way of vandalization or fraudulent activity, the member cannot be inserted beyond the predetermined position since the paper sheet traveling route is bent at the predetermined position. In particular, since important components such as a line sensor and the like are installed in the paper sheet identification part and the paper sheet traveling route is bent on the upstream side therefrom, it is possible to prevent the important components from being damaged. 
     Further, the paper sheet conveyance mechanism includes a swing member pivotally supporting one of the pair of contact members. The contact member pivotally supported by the swing member is pressed against the other contact member by a spring. 
     In such configuration, when one of the pair of contact members moves so as to slidingly contact the inserted paper sheet (moves so as to contact the other contact member), the moving contact member presses the paper sheet with biasing force of the spring, and can be spaced from the other contact member against the biased force by the spring. Therefore, the moving contact member can slidingly contact the paper sheet with appropriate biased force. 
     Further, the driving source comprises a motor which enables one of the pair of contact members to move toward the other contact member. 
     In such configuration, one of the contact members moves toward the other contact member by driving the motor. At a position where the pair of contact members contact with each other, it suffices to stop the driving of the motor since a position of the conveyor member is not controlled by a solenoid. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide electrical power for controlling the moving contact member. 
     In accordance with the present embodiment, a paper sheet processing apparatus capable of stably conveying even a severely-damaged paper sheet toward the inside of the apparatus can be obtained.