Patent ID: 7658668

Claim:
A hopper coin feeder of the horizontal disc type comprising a circular resilient hopper wall defining with a horizontal disc, a hopper space for receiving coins and providing the principal coin holding zone of the hopper feeder, the disc and the hopper wall being arranged in use to rotate relative to a machine chassis, the resilient hopper wall having a lower edge which is closely adjacent to, or in light contact with, the upper face of the horizontal disc when the hopper wall is not flexed, and a stationary coin pushing member extending generally radially inwardly from adjacent the edge of the horizontal disc, beneath said lower edge into said hopper space, the hopper coin feeder being so arranged that, in use, a coin input to the hopper space is carried on the rotating horizontal disc, and on contact with the coin pushing member is urged radially outwardly beneath the lower edge of the resilient hopper wall, the hopper wall flexing in order to allow the coin to pass, the hopper coin feeder further comprising a resilient band that confronts the margin of the upper face of the disc, is external to the lower edge of the hopper wall, and is driven around with the disc, the arrangement being such that coins fed to the band by said coin pushing member are then carried around with the disc, gripped between the band and the disc but projecting radially outwards from the band.