Patent ID: 8820508

Claim:
A bill handling apparatus comprising: a lower frame having: a first bill feeding face for feeding a bill; and a pair of first and second side wall portions formed on opposite sides in a width direction of the first bill feeding face; an upper frame being openable and closable with respect to the lower frame so as to cover the lower frame, the upper frame having: a second bill feeding face configured so that a clearance serving as a bill feeding path for feeding the bill is formed between the first bill feeding face of the lower frame and the second bill feeding face faced to the first bill feeding face with the upper frame being in a closed state in which the upper frame enters between the pair of side wall portions of the lower frame; and a bill reading section installed in the upper frame and the lower frame so as to be formed in a width direction of the bill feeding path in order to read information across a full width of the bill fed on the bill feeding path, wherein: the bill reading section includes: a first light-emitting portion disposed on the second bill feeding face of the upper frame, the first light-emitting portion configured to emit slit-shaped light in the width direction of the bill feeding path at a side of one face of the bill; and a second light-emitting portion disposed on the first bill feeding face of the lower frame, the second light-emitting portion configured to emit slit-shaped light in the width direction of the bill feeding path at a side of the other face of the bill; wherein the first light-emitting portion of the upper frame and the second light-emitting portion of the lower frame each have a longitudinal length greater than the width of the bill feeding path formed by the first and second bill feeding faces, and each of the first and second light-emitting portion have first and second terminal end portions that protrude in a feeding width direction of the bill more significantly than the first and second bill feeding faces which form the bill feeding pathway through which the bill is fed between the pair of side wall portions; the first and second light-emitting portions are configured to emit and guide light along their respective longitudinal lengths; and the first and second side wall portions of the lower frame are provided with notch concave portions, respectively, so that both of the first and second terminal end portions of the second light-emitting portion of the lower frame and both of the first and second terminal end portions of the first light-emitting portion of the upper frame in the closed state with respect to the lower frame are positioned in the notch concave portion.