Cash box with means for detecting tampering attempts

Abstract

cash box, with a case (12), wherein at least one detection substance (26, 32, 34) is introduced into at least one sub-area of ​​at least one wall (24) of the housing (12), which is at least partially released in the event of mechanical damage to the wall (24) in this sub-area, and wherein the cash box (10, 30) includes at least one tamper sensor (25) for detecting the release of detection substance (26, 32, 34), characterized in that the at least one tamper sensor (25) is arranged in the inner area of ​​the cash box (10, 30) formed by the housing (12).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a cashbox comprising a housing.

[0002] The housing contains at least one storage area for notes of value to be stored. The notes of value can be stored in stacks and / or wound on rolls. Known cash boxes contain a variety of sensors for detecting tampering attempts. In particular, position sensors are used to determine the position of the cash box in space, liquid sensors, gas sensors, and / or shock sensors are used to detect impact loads. If a tampering attempt is detected by at least one sensor, a devaluation unit, in particular a so-called ink kit, is triggered, which irreversibly devalues ​​the notes of value stored in the cash box, in particular by coloring them with a dye.The problem with such known cash boxes is that the sensors can be bypassed by carefully drilling or cutting open the cash box without causing any vibration, i.e. the sensors do not detect this manipulation attempt and thus a thief carrying out the manipulation can access the stored notes without them having been canceled beforehand.

[0003] Document US 2006 / 0077065 A1 discloses a cashbox with a foil enclosing a fine-mesh wire mesh glued to its interior. The wire mesh is part of an electrical detection circuit that generates tamper data or tamper signals when the wire mesh is mechanically damaged. The problem with using such foils is that, due to the wire mesh, they are only deformable to a limited extent and thus difficult to adapt to the jagged surface structure of the interior of the casing. In particular, it is necessary to leave some areas of the casing exposed, meaning complete protection is not guaranteed.

[0004] Document DE 10 2004 007 581 B4 discloses a safe with multiple walls that comprise receiving chambers for a liquid, in particular an ink. Furthermore, a measuring and triggering device with a sensor is provided, which detects a release of the liquid, for example, as a result of damage to the receiving chambers. The sensor 15 is arranged inside the liquid.

[0005] Document DE 20 2007 007 592 U1 discloses a safe with molded foam incorporated into a safe wall as a detection substance.

[0006] In the documents DE 10 2004 007 581 B4 and DE 20 2007 007 592 U1, a manipulation attempt is detected relatively reliably.

[0007] The object of the invention is to provide a cashbox in which attempts at manipulation are detected differently than in the prior art known from the cited documents.

[0008] This object is achieved by a cashbox having the features of claim 1. Advantageous developments of the invention are specified in the dependent claims.

[0009] By providing at least one detection substance that is introduced into at least one partial area of ​​at least one wall of the housing and that is at least partially released in the event of mechanical damage to the wall in this partial area, as well as by detecting the at least one released detection substance by the at least one tamper sensor, mechanical damage to the housing, in particular drilling or cutting, can be reliably detected in a simple manner. When the wall is drilled through or cut, the at least one detection substance is inevitably released, so that it can be detected by the at least one tamper sensor.

[0010] The at least one tamper sensor is arranged in the interior of the cashbox formed by the housing. This ensures that the at least one tamper sensor is not freely accessible and is protected by the cashbox, and that purely external mechanical damage, in which the wall of the cashbox is not completely severed, is not detected by the at least one tamper sensor. Even if some of the detection substance is released, it will not reach the at least one sensor in the event of purely external damage and a closed cashbox, so that no tamper attempt is detected and the notes are not unnecessarily invalidated.This ensures that the at least one manipulation sensor only detects a manipulation attempt when the wall is drilled through or cut or when similar mechanical processing methods completely sever the wall and the control unit triggers the devaluation unit accordingly.

[0011] The cashbox preferably comprises a validation unit for irreversibly invalidating notes of value held in the cashbox and a control unit for controlling the validation unit. The control unit controls the validation unit, in particular, such that it irreversibly invalidates the stored notes of value if a tampering attempt has been detected by the at least one tampering sensor, i.e., if a tampering sensor has detected the release of a detection substance. The at least one tampering sensor generates, in particular, tamper data containing information about a tampering attempt and / or a tampering signal, depending on which the control unit activates the validation unit.

[0012] The at least one detection substance is preferably distributed throughout the entire housing, so that mechanical damage can be detected at any point, even in complex, jagged housing structures. This ensures a high degree of security and prevents attempts at tampering.

[0013] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the at least one detection substance comprises an explosive, and the at least one tamper sensor comprises an odor sensor for detecting this explosive. If the wall is pierced or cut, the explosive is released, allowing it to be easily and reliably detected using the odor sensor. Furthermore, such odor sensors for detecting explosives are easy and inexpensive to obtain.

[0014] Furthermore, the at least one detection substance can be selected such that, when released, it reacts with the ambient air. In this context, ambient air refers to both the air surrounding the cashbox and the air arranged in the interior of the cashbox formed by the housing. The at least one tamper sensor detects at least one reaction product of this reaction: the temperature, a temperature change, a noise generated by the reaction, mist generated by the reaction, and / or vapor produced by the reaction. The at least one detection substance is, in particular, selected such that, together with the ambient air, a violent chemical reaction takes place, releasing a large amount of heat and producing a large amount of mist and / or vapor.This ensures that at least one tamper sensor can reliably detect temperature changes, fog, and / or vapor, thus reliably and promptly detecting any tamper attempt. Furthermore, this ensures that only one tamper sensor needs to be installed in the cashbox, and that it detects any tamper attempt regardless of where the casing is pierced or cut.

[0015] The at least one detection substance preferably comprises at least one pyrophoric substance, in particular magnesium, cesium, rubidium, and / or white phosphorus. Such pyrophoric substances react directly with the oxygen in the ambient air at room temperature and release a large amount of heat during the exothermic reaction, so that a significant temperature change can be detected by the at least one tamper sensor. Furthermore, the reactions of these pyrophoric substances with the ambient air occur with the emission of light, so that an optical sensor can be used in addition to or alternatively to detecting the temperature change. In this exemplary embodiment, the detection substance is preferably in powder form, which accelerates the reaction of the pyrophoric substance with the ambient air, thus allowing the reaction to be detected even more easily and reliably.

[0016] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, one of the detection substances is a first detection substance. A second detection substance is introduced into the at least one partial region of the wall, which is at least partially released together with the first detection substance upon mechanical damage to the wall in this partial region. The released first and second detection substances react with each other, with the at least one tamper sensor detecting at least one reaction product of this reaction, the temperature, a temperature change, a noise generated by the reaction, fog generated by the reaction, and / or vapor generated by the reaction.The use of two detection substances that react with each other has the advantage over the use of only one detection substance that reacts with the ambient air: the reaction is more targeted, since the composition of both substances is known and preset, whereas in the reaction with the ambient air, the composition of the ambient air can vary. This results in even more reliable detection of tampering attempts.

[0017] The at least one tamper sensor comprises, in particular, an acoustic sensor, an optical sensor, and / or an odor sensor. The acoustic sensor can be used to detect sounds generated by the reaction of the detection substance(s). The optical sensor can be used to detect, for example, light generated during the reaction and / or dust released.

[0018] The housing is, in particular, injection-molded from a plastic material. The at least one detection substance is injected during the injection molding process, enabling simple, cost-effective production. The at least one detection substance is, in particular, distributed over the entire housing, rather than just in a portion of the housing, allowing mechanical damage to be detected at any point on the housing.

[0019] The cashbox may include several tamper sensors located at various locations within the cashbox so that any attempted tampering can be easily and promptly detected, regardless of where the casing is mechanically damaged.

[0020] In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the at least one detection substance is contained in a plurality of capsules. When the housing is pierced or cut, the shell of the respective capsule is also damaged, such that the detection substance contained in the capsules is released. The capsules are in particular accommodated in the wall of the housing. The capsules ensure that the substance can be injected easily and safely into the walls of the housing. In particular, liquid and / or gaseous detection substances can also be introduced into the wall in this way. The capsules are in particular distributed over the entire housing so that a tampering attempt can be detected regardless of where the wall is attempted to be pierced or cut. The distribution of the capsules is in particular random.In the embodiment with two detection substances, both detection substances are contained in capsules, with the capsules being mixed and injected into the wall. The capsules are particularly spherical, allowing them to be easily injected. The capsules preferably comprise a plastic shell.

[0021] The capsules are arranged in particular in such a way that when the wall is drilled through or cut, at least when a sufficiently large hole is created for access to the notes of value, at least one capsule with the detection substance or at least one capsule with the first and one capsule with the second detection substance are damaged, so that it is ensured that both the first detection substance and the second detection substance are released.

[0022] In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the detection substance(s) may not be contained in capsules, but may be incorporated into the conversion without a coating. For this purpose, pressed powdered substances are used, which are released again in powder form when the wall is drilled and / or cut.

[0023] Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, which explains the invention in more detail using exemplary embodiments in conjunction with the attached figures.

[0024] They show: Fig. 1 is a schematic representation of a cashbox according to a first embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 2 a schematic representation of a cashbox according to a second embodiment of the invention.

[0025] In Fig. Figure 1 shows a schematic, highly simplified representation of a cashbox 10 according to a first embodiment of the invention. The cashbox 10 comprises a housing 12 and a receiving area 14 arranged inside the housing 12 for receiving notes of value. One of these notes of value received in the cashbox 10 is designated by the reference numeral 16. In the embodiment shown in Fig. In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, the notes of value 16 are stored in the receiving area 14 in the form of a stack of notes of value 18. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the notes of value 16 can also be stored wound up on one or more roll storage devices.

[0026] The housing 12 is in Fig. 1 is shown only in a highly simplified manner. The housing 12 comprises, in particular, a base body having an opening through which notes of value can be manually inserted or removed. Furthermore, the housing 12 has a lid for closing this opening, wherein the lid can be connected to the housing 12 via closure elements. In addition, the housing 12 preferably has a further opening that can be closed by a blind, through which, when the cashbox 10 is accommodated in an ATM, an automatic safe or an automatic cash register system, notes of value 16 can be inserted or removed. Furthermore, the wall 24 of the housing 12, unlike in Fig. 1, may also not be smooth but rather jagged, ie the inner and / or outer surface of the wall 24 may have a plurality of elevations and recesses.

[0027] Furthermore, the cashbox 10 comprises an ink kit 20, with the aid of which, in the event of a tampering attempt, the notes of value 16 received in the receiving area 14 are irreversibly colored with a dye, so that they can no longer be put into circulation by a potential thief attempting the tampering and are thus worthless to him. Furthermore, the cashbox 10 has a control unit 22 for controlling the ink kit 20, in particular for triggering the ink kit 20. The control unit 22 and the ink kit 20 are arranged within the housing 12 of the cashbox 10 and are thus protected from access by the housing 12.

[0028] The housing 12 is made, in particular, of a plastic material and manufactured using an injection-molding process. This results in a lightweight, robust cashbox 10 and a simple, cost-effective manufacturing process. A detection substance 26 is introduced into the wall 24 of the housing 12. If the wall 24 is pierced or cut to access the notes 16 held in the housing 12, the capsules 28 containing the detection substance 26 are also damaged, causing the detection substance 26 to be released. The detection substance 26 is selected such that, when released, it reacts with the ambient air in a violent chemical reaction. The cashbox 10 comprises, in the interior region formed by the housing 12, at least one tamper sensor 25, with the aid of which this chemical reaction of the detection substance 26 with the ambient air can be detected.The violent chemical reaction may in particular be designed in such a way that it releases a large amount of heat, mist, steam and / or a loud noise, which can be detected with the aid of the manipulation sensor 25.

[0029] Once the at least one manipulation sensor 25 has detected the chemical reaction, it transmits manipulation data containing information about a manipulation attempt and / or a manipulation signal to the control unit 22, which then triggers the ink kit 20, so that the notes of value 16 are inked. The manipulation sensor 25 comprises, in particular, an optical, an acoustic, and / or an odor sensor.

[0030] The capsules 28 are, in particular, spherical. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the capsules 28 can also have a shape other than spherical. The capsules 28 are, in particular, directly injected during the injection molding of the housing 12, thus enabling simple and cost-effective production of the housing 12 and thus of the cashbox 10.

[0031] In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the detection substance 26 may not be contained in capsules 28, but may be introduced into the wall 24 without a surrounding shell. In this case, the substance spheres consist in particular of a pressed powder of the detection substance 26. In a further alternative embodiment of the invention, instead of a plurality of capsules 28 and / or spheres, a closed layer of the detection substance 26 may be introduced into the wall 24. This closed layer may be enclosed on both sides or only on one side by the plastic of the wall 24. By providing a closed layer, it is ensured that the wall 24 is always severed when it is drilled or cut, and that a thief does not, by chance, drill right through the capsules 28.

[0032] The capsules 28 are, in particular, distributed unevenly within the wall 24. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the capsules 28 can also be distributed evenly over the wall 24 according to a preset pattern. The capsules 28 are, in particular, distributed such that they are arranged so close to one another that when the wall 24 is cut and / or drilled, regardless of the size of the hole or cut created, at least one capsule 28 is damaged, thus ensuring that the detection substance 26 is released.

[0033] Alternatively, the air quality of the air in the cashbox 10 can also be determined using at least one manipulation sensor 25. The chemical reaction is then detected based on the air quality.

[0034] In Fig. 2 shows a schematic representation of a cashbox 30 according to a second embodiment of the invention. In contrast to the cashbox 10 according to the first embodiment according to Fig. 1, capsules 28 containing two different detection substances 32, 34 are injected into the wall 24 of the housing 10 of the cashbox 30. The capsules 28 containing the first detection substance 32 are colored white, whereas the capsules 28 containing the second detection substance 34 are shown in black. The capsules 28 containing the first detection substance 32 and the capsules 28 containing the second detection substance 34 are arranged in a randomly distributed manner within the wall 24.

[0035] The capsules 28 are arranged such that when the wall 24 is drilled through or cut, at least when a sufficiently large hole is created for access to the notes of value 16, at least one capsule 28 containing the first detection substance 32 and at least one capsule 28 containing the second detection substance 34 are damaged, so that both the first detection substance 32 and the second detection substance 34 are released. The released first detection substance 32 and the second detection substance 34 react chemically with one another. In particular, a violent chemical reaction occurs, so that this can be easily detected by the tamper sensor 25. The chemical reaction is detected by the at least one tamper sensor 25, in particular in the same way as previously described for the case where only one detection substance 26 is provided, which reacts with the ambient air.

[0036] The detection substances 26, 32, 34 can be gaseous, liquid, powdery, or solid. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the presence of the detection substances 26, 32, 34 in the interior region of the cashbox 10 defined by the housing 12 can be detected directly with the aid of the at least one tamper sensor 24, rather than the reaction of the detection substances 26, 32, 34.

[0037] Injecting the at least one detection substance 26, 32, 34 into the wall 24 of the housing 12 enables simple, cost-effective production. In particular, this allows the at least one detection substance 26, 32, 34 to be distributed throughout the entire housing 12, so that even with complex, jagged structures of the housing 12, mechanical damage can be detected at any point on the housing 12. This ensures a high degree of security and prevents attempts at tampering. List of reference symbols 10, 30 cashbox 12 housings 14 Recording area 16 voucher 18 stacks of banknotes 20 ink kit 22 Control unit 24 wall 25 Tamper sensor 26, 32, 34 Detection substance 28 capsules

Claims

[1] Cashbox, with a housing (12), wherein at least one detection substance (26, 32, 34) is introduced into at least one partial area of at least one wall (24) of the housing (12), which is at least partially released in the event of mechanical damage to the wall (24) in this partial area, and wherein the cashbox (10, 30) comprises at least one manipulation sensor (25) for detecting the release of detection substance (26, 32, 34), characterized by that the at least one manipulation sensor (25) is arranged in the inner region of the cashbox (10, 30) formed by the housing (12). [2] Cashbox (10, 30) according to claim 1, characterized by that the at least one detection substance (26, 32, 34) comprises an explosive, and that the at least one manipulation sensor (25) comprises an odor sensor for detecting this explosive. [3] Cashbox (10, 30) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the at least one released detection substance (26, 32, 34) reacts with the ambient air, and that the at least one manipulation sensor (25) detects at least one reaction product, the temperature, a temperature change, a noise generated by the reaction, mist generated by the reaction and / or vapor generated by the reaction. [4] Cashbox (10, 30) according to claim 3, characterized by that the at least one detection substance (26, 32, 34) comprises at least one pyrophoric substance, in particular magnesium, caesium, rubidium and / or white phosphorus. [5] Cashbox (10, 30) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat one of the detection substances (32, 34) is a first detection substance (32), that at least one second detection substance (34) is introduced into the at least one partial region of the wall (24), which is at least partially released in the event of mechanical damage to the wall (24) in this partial region, that the released first detection substance (32) and the released second detection substance (34) react with one another, and that the at least one manipulation sensor (25) detects at least one reaction product, the temperature, a temperature change, a noise generated by the reaction, mist generated by the reaction and / or vapor generated by the reaction. [6] Cashbox (10, 30) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the at least one manipulation sensor (25) comprises an acoustic sensor, a light sensor and / or an odor sensor. [7] Cashbox (10, 30) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the housing (12) is injection-molded from a plastic, and that the at least one detection substance (26, 32, 34) is also injected. [8] Cashbox (10, 30) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the at least one detection substance (26, 32, 34) is accommodated in a plurality of capsules (28), and that the capsules (28) are accommodated in the wall (24) of the housing (12). [9] Cashbox (10, 30) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the at least one detection substance (26, 32, 34) is gaseous, liquid or powdery. [10] Cashbox (10, 30) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat a devaluation unit (20) for irreversibly devaluing notes of value (16) held in the cashbox (10, 30), in particular an ink kit, and a control unit (22) for controlling the devaluation unit (20) are provided.

Images