Patent ID: 7568972

Claim:
A coin counter, comprising: a stand; a receptacle including a base wall disposed on said stand, and a peripheral wall extending from a peripheral portion of said base wall, said base wall and said peripheral wall defining a space that is adapted for holding coins and that has an opening adapted for allowing passage of coins into said space, said receptacle further including a coin exit member disposed on said base wall and spatially communicated with said space; a drive assembly including a driving member, and a drive shaft extending through said base wall of said receptacle and driven rotatably in a direction by said driving member; a rotary plate assembly disposed in said space adjacent to said base wall, said rotary plate assembly being coupled to and driven to rotate in the direction by said drive shaft so as to eject the coins out of said receptacle via said coin exit member; a rigid push rod including a fixed portion secured outwardly of said space, a mid-portion extending from said fixed portion into said space and toward said coin exit member, and a sweep portion extending from said mid-portion to a location proximate to said coin exit member, said sweep portion forming a spacing with one surface of said rotary plate assembly that is substantially equal to a thickness of the coins held in said receptacle; and a counter disposed on said base wall in proximity to said coin exit member and adapted to count the coins ejected by said rotary plate assembly, said counter including a sensing element, an interrupting element, and a resilient element having opposite ends coupled respectively to said interrupting element and said stand, said interrupting element being movable between a first position whereat said interrupting element is biased by said resilient element into a path of ejection of the coins, and a second position whereat said interrupting element is displaced against the biasing force of said resilient element by one of the coins being ejected into said coin exit member, said sensing element detecting displacement of said interrupting element from the first position to the second position, said resilient element being pre-tensioned so as to be extended by a first extension amount when said interrupting element is at the first position, and by a second extension amount greater than the first extension amount when said interrupting element is at the second position.