Patent ID: 7255216

Claim:
A bill handling machine for receiving multiple kinds of bills from the exterior to store them temporarily and discharging a specified bill from the stored bills to the exterior, comprising: a machine body for conveying a bill received from the exterior and storing bills other than a dischargeable bill, and at least one detachable box having a mounted section detachably mounted to a mounting section of the machine body for storing and discharging a dischargeable bill which is conveyed from the machine body, wherein the machine body includes a distinguishing device for distinguishing whether or not a bill received from the exterior is a dischargeable bill, a conveying device for conveying the bill in a normal or reverse direction between the distinguishing device and the mounting section, a keeping bill storage section for storing bills other than the dischargeable bill which is conveyed by the conveying device, and an active torque transmission unit constituting a part of the conveying device at the mounting section; and the detachable box includes a dischargeable bill storage section for storing at least the dischargeable bill which is conveyed by the conveying device so as to be discharged, a passive torque transmission unit at the mounted section of the detachable box and being engageable with the active torque transmission unit to drive the dischargeable bill storage section, the active torque transmission unit and the passive torque transmission unit being engageable with each other by mounting the detachable box to the machine body and being disengageable by dismounting the detachable box from the machine body, at least one of the active torque transmission unit and the passive torque transmission unit comprising a clutch, and wherein transmission of a driving force to the dischargeable bill storage section is capable of being shut off in a state where the passive torque transmission unit is in engagement with the active torque transmission unit, the clutch being brought out of engagement when a bill received from the exterior is other than a dischargeable bill, the engagement and disengagement of the clutch being performed according to an inlet sensor provided in the vicinity of a slot of a convey passage for conveying a bill in the machine body, an outlet sensor provided in the vicinity of an outlet of the convey passage, and a passage sensor provided in the vicinity of the inlet of a convey passage in the detachable box, wherein at the bill-storing operation of the dischargeable bill storage section, when the trailing end of a bill passes through the passage sensor the clutch is brought out of engagement and when the leading end of the following bill to be stored passes through the outlet sensor the clutch is brought into engagement.