Device and method for stacking value documents

Abstract

The invention relates to a device (10) and a method for stacking value documents (12). The device comprises a stacker unit (20) for receiving the value documents (12) and a conveyor unit (30) for conveying the value documents (12) into the stacker unit (20). The stacker unit (20) comprises a rotatable stacker wheel (22) for receiving the value documents (12), wherein the rotatable stacker wheel (22) has a plurality of deflectable stacker wheel segments (24) which are provided along the circumference of the rotatable stacker wheel (22) in a mutually spaced manner. Each of the deflectable stacker wheel segments (24) defines a respective receiving region (26) for receiving at least one of the value documents (12). The device additionally comprises a deflecting unit (40) which is designed to deflect each stacker wheel segment (24) individually in order to thus modify the size of the respective receiving region (26) associated with the stacker wheel segment (24).

Description

[0001] Device and method for stacking valuable documents

[0002] The present invention relates to a device for stacking valuable documents and a method for stacking valuable documents.

[0003] Security document stacking devices, especially spiral stackers, are used today for stacking valuable documents such as banknotes. For example, valuable document stacking devices are used in processing devices such as checking, counting, or sorting machines. The valuable documents are first separated from a stack to enable checking, counting, or sorting of the individual valuable documents. The valuable documents are then restacked by the stacking device to make them available in stacked form for further processing.

[0004] Within the stacker device, the valuable documents are transported to the corresponding stacker compartments of a forklift by means of a suitable transport unit, for example, conveyor belts. The actual arrival time of the valuable documents arriving at the forklift individually and one after the other may be slightly delayed compared to the target arrival time of the valuable documents at the forklift due to their separation or transport. There is then a risk that a valuable document delayed in this way, instead of being inserted into the corresponding forklift compartment, will strike the forklift fingers bordering the forklift compartment, damaging the valuable document, or will be inserted into the same forklift compartment with another valuable document, or will not enter the forklift at all but will fly past it.

[0005] It is an object of the present invention to make the stacking process when stacking valuable documents more reliable.

[0006] This object is achieved by the subject matter of the independent claims. Exemplary embodiments emerge from the dependent claims and the following description. According to one aspect, a device for stacking valuable documents or a stacking device for valuable documents, for example banknotes, is specified. The device comprises a stacker unit for receiving the valuable documents and optionally a conveyor unit for conveying the valuable documents into the stacker unit. However, the conveyor unit can also be provided by a valuable document processing device in which the stacking device is installed. The stacker unit comprises a rotatable stacker wheel for receiving the valuable documents, wherein the rotatable stacker wheel has a plurality of deflectable stacker wheel segments which are arranged at a distance from one another along a circumference of the rotating stacker wheel.The deflectable stacker wheel segments each define a receiving area for receiving one of the valuable documents conveyed into the stacker unit. The device further comprises a deflection unit designed to deflect the stacker wheel segments individually in order to change, in particular to enlarge, a size, in particular a width, of a receiving area assigned to a stacker wheel segment. In particular, by deflecting the respective stacker wheel segment, a width of the receiving area assigned to the respective stacker wheel segment, into which the respective valuable document is to be conveyed, is increased. The width corresponds to the size of the respective receiving area in the direction perpendicular to the valuable document plane of the valuable document to be conveyed into the respective receiving area (at the time the valuable document enters the respective receiving area / entry area of ​​the stacker wheel).

[0007] The receiving area assigned to the respective forklift wheel segment is the receiving area of ​​the forklift wheel that lies directly in front of the respective forklift wheel segment, viewed along the rotation direction of the forklift wheel. It is the receiving area that the respective forklift wheel segment limits to the rear, viewed along the rotation direction of the rotatable forklift wheel.

[0008] With such a device for stacking valuable documents, it is possible to make the reception of valuable documents into the stacker wheel more reliable during rotation of the stacker wheel. To this end, the size or width of the reception area is increased for all or individually for certain valuable documents fed to the stacker wheel. Since the reception area is only briefly located on the transport path of the valuable document due to the rotation of the stacker wheel and is open there to receive a valuable document conveyed to the stacker wheel, the deflection of the stacker wheel segment and the associated enlargement of the reception area extends the reception period in which a valuable document can be fed into a reception area or stacker compartment assigned to the stacker wheel segment during rotation of the stacker wheel.In other words, the insertion time window for inserting the valuable document into this assigned receiving area is extended, as the deflection of the stacker wheel segment ensures that the receiving area is available for the insertion of the respective valuable document for longer. This means that even a delayed valuable document can still be safely inserted into the receiving area of ​​the stacker wheel.

[0009] The device essentially comprises the stacker unit, optionally the conveyor unit, and the deflection unit. The stacker unit of the device comprises the rotatable stacker wheel, which rotates (continuously) around a rotational axis during operation of the device. The deflectable stacker wheel segments can be arranged at equal distances from one another along the circumference of the rotatable stacker wheel. The stacker wheel segments can be provided in the form of elastically deformable or bendable projections or stacker wheel fingers, which extend radially and optionally also circumferentially from the stacker wheel. This will be explained in more detail in the description of the figures.

[0010] The device may also have a stacking tray on which the value documents stacked by the stacking unit can be stacked. The stacking tray can be provided by a stacking compartment from which the formed value document stack can be removed. The stacking unit can have a stripper by which the value documents received in the stacking wheel or in the receiving areas of the stacking wheel are stripped out due to the rotational movement of the stacking wheel and are thereby stacked on the stacking tray. The invention also relates to a value document processing device which has the stacking device according to the invention for stacking value documents and a device for separating value documents from an initial stack and for feeding the separated value documents to the stacking device, e.g. with the aid of a transport device of the value document processing device.

[0011] Two adjacent forklift wheel segments can each define a receiving area, the size or width of which is changed by deflecting one of these forklift wheel segments. In one example, the forklift wheel and the forklift wheel segments arranged on its circumference rotate around the forklift wheel's axis of rotation, so that the individual forklift wheel segments are each moved past or brushed past the deflection unit individually and one after the other. The deflection unit can deflect a forklift wheel segment as it moves past or brushes past, so that this forklift wheel segment is pushed or deflected towards the inside of the forklift wheel. A neighboring forklift wheel segment, which has already moved past the deflection unit immediately beforehand, is not (or no longer) deflected and therefore protrudes further from the inside of the forklift wheel.Consequently, the recording area is effectively enlarged and the recording period for recording a valuable document is extended, as previously described.

[0012] The receiving area can therefore be delimited by two adjacent stacker wheel segments. The receiving area can thus define an entry opening through which the valuable document can be fed into a stacker wheel compartment assigned to the receiving area. In particular, the receiving area can be defined by an inner side or a free end of a first stacker wheel segment and an outer side or rear side of an adjacent second stacker wheel segment. Each receiving area can correspond to an associated stacker wheel compartment.

[0013] The stacker unit can be designed in the form of a spiral compartment stacker, wherein the stacker wheel compartments are arranged in a spiral shape within the rotating stacker wheel. The valuable documents are placed in the stacker wheel compartments, whereby it can be provided that with each rotation of the stacker wheel only a single valuable document is placed in a stacker wheel compartment. Thus, with one rotation of the stacker wheel, each of the stacker wheel compartments can be filled with a single valuable document. As the rotation continues, the valuable documents are stripped out of the stacker wheel by means of a stripper and thereby deposited in the form of a stack on a stacking tray. The stacker wheel can thus be designed to stack the valuable documents on the tray, whereby the valuable documents are stacked, for example, in an output compartment of a valuable document processing device, for example a sorting device.

[0014] The deflection unit is arranged in the entry area of ​​the forklift wheel and can deflect the forklift wheel segments individually, one after the other, particularly elastically, during the rotation of the forklift wheel. This can be achieved mechanically, for example, through mechanical contact between the deflection unit and the respective forklift wheel segment. A deflection movement of the respective forklift wheel segment can be caused by a contact force exerted by a deflection element of the deflection unit on the forklift wheel segment, causing this forklift wheel segment to be elastically deflected, e.g., displaced and / or deformed.

[0015] The conveyor unit is designed to transport the individual valuable documents to the stacker unit of the device. The conveyor unit can be connected to a transport device of the valuable document processing device, which transfers the valuable documents to the conveyor unit. The valuable documents are preferably fed individually and sequentially to the stacker unit by means of the conveyor unit, so that only one valuable document at a time can reach a receiving area and thus a corresponding stacker wheel compartment. The time of arrival of the valuable document at the stacker wheel therefore determines which receiving area this valuable document will reach.If a valuable document reaches the receiving area with a (temporal) delay, the resulting extension of the receiving period into an assigned receiving area can be made possible by deflecting the corresponding stacker wheel segment, so that the valuable document still reaches the receiving area intended for this valuable document (and does not hit the stacker wheel segment or finger).

[0016] The device according to the invention can therefore use the deflection unit at the inlet of the stacker wheel to deflect the elastically deformable stacker wheel segments or stacker wheel fingers and thus briefly widen each of the receiving areas or stacker wheel compartments (the rear wall of which forms the stacker wheel segment) that move one after the other past the deflection element. The deflection movement can take place in the direction of the inside of the stacker wheel, for example with a radial directional component towards the stacker wheel rotation axis. This can enlarge the inlet opening of the receiving area that is intended to receive the respective valuable document, which in turn can ensure the insertion of a value document with a time delay. The other stacker wheel segments can remain in their normal or starting position. If the deflected stacker wheel segment comes out of contact or engagement with the deflection unit orWhen the deflection element is moved outward, the deflected forklift wheel segment moves elastically back to its normal or starting position. Therefore, the inlet opening of the receiving area is the same size after the deflection of its rear forklift wheel segment as it was before the deflection.

[0017] In particular, the deflection unit is designed to sequentially deflect the forklift wheel segments arranged along a circumference of the rotatable forklift wheel (which come into contact with the deflection unit sequentially due to the rotation of the forklift wheel), thereby changing the size of the receiving area assigned to the respective forklift wheel segment. This can be performed (selectively only) for some of the deflectable forklift wheel segments of the rotatable forklift wheel or for each of the deflectable forklift wheel segments of the rotatable forklift wheel.

[0018] The forklift wheel segments can be evenly distributed around the circumference of the forklift wheel. Since the forklift wheel segments are moved past the deflection unit one after the other due to the rotation of the forklift wheel, they only come into contact with the deflection unit one at a time, so that at a given time, only a single forklift wheel segment is deflected, while the remaining forklift wheel segments of the plurality of forklift wheel segments are not deflected.

[0019] The deflection element of the deflection unit can be a static deflection element arranged such that, during the rotation of the stacker wheel, it comes into contact successively with each of the deflectable stacker wheel segments of the rotatable stacker wheel in order to deflect it and thereby change the size of the receiving area assigned to the respective stacker wheel segment. In particular, the static deflection element is (permanently) mechanically fixed during operation of the valuable document stacking carried out by the device. However, it can be provided that it can be adjusted within the device before valuable document stacking, for example by a pre-adjustment. In the case of a static or fixed deflection element, each stacker wheel segment is deflected by the same deflection distance, whereby the size of each receiving area defined on the circumference is changed equally when the respectively assigned stacker wheel segment is being deflected.In other words, the static or fixed deflection element is not actively moved during the stacking of valuable documents and thus during the rotation of the stacker wheel, so that it deflects each stacker wheel segment by the same distance, thus equally widening the entry opening of each of the successively arriving receiving areas. The deflection element can, for example, be adjustable in its position to find an optimal position for the deflection element offline, i.e., when the device's operation is interrupted.

[0020] However, it can also be provided that the forklift wheel segments, or at least some of the forklift wheel segments, can be deflected by a different amount. In other words, the deflection unit, in particular the deflection element of the deflection unit, can be actively and dynamically movable in order to select a position of the deflection element individually for the respective valuable document to be picked up, for example, depending on a transport position of the respective valuable document determined by a detection unit before entering the forklift wheel. In one example, only deflection or non-deflection can be decided dynamically and individually for the respective valuable document.Additionally or alternatively, in another example, a deflection distance of the deflection element can also be selected individually for the respective value document, for example depending on a transport position and / or a deceleration of the respective value document before entering the forklift wheel, wherein the transport position and / or the deceleration can in turn be determined by the detection unit.

[0021] In particular, the plurality of forklift wheel segments comprises a first forklift wheel segment with a first associated receiving area and a second forklift wheel segment with a second associated receiving area, which are arranged spaced apart from one another along the circumference of the rotatable forklift wheel. The deflection unit is designed to deflect the first forklift wheel segment and the second forklift wheel segment differently one after the other such that a size or width of the first receiving area upon deflection of the first forklift wheel segment differs from a size or width of the second receiving area upon deflection of the second forklift wheel segment. The first and second forklift wheel segments can be adjacent to one another along the circumference of the forklift wheel, or other forklift wheel segments can be located between them.

[0022] In other words, the deflection unit can deflect the individual forklift wheel segments by a different deflection distance, thus individually adjusting the size or width of each pickup area. This corresponds to the previously described example of an actively dynamically movable deflection unit, in particular an actively dynamically movable deflection element of the deflection unit.

[0023] According to one embodiment, the deflection unit is designed to deflect the deflectable forklift wheel segments toward an inner region of the rotating forklift wheel. The forklift wheel can essentially have a disc shape, with the individual forklift wheel segments being arranged on the circumference of the forklift wheel. The deflectable forklift wheel segments can each have a freely movable end. The inner region can represent a region formed directly around the rotational axis of the forklift wheel. In particular, the inner region can encompass the rotational axis and thus the center of the forklift wheel. The direction of movement of the forklift wheel segments upon their deflection by the deflection unit can thus have a radial directional component, such that the forklift wheel segments are deflected essentially in the radial direction relative to the rotating forklift wheel.

[0024] In particular, the rotatable stacker wheel has a rotation axis fixed within the device, wherein the stacker wheel and thus the deflectable stacker wheel segments provided on the circumference of the stacker wheel are rotatable about the fixed rotation axis at a predeterminable rotation speed.

[0025] The rotational speed can be constant if the forklift wheel is a continuously rotating forklift wheel. The rotational speed can be adjusted for a specific application. The fixed axis of rotation fixes the forklift wheel so that it can rotate relative to the device. The deflection unit, on the other hand, can be at least partially movable relative to the device or have a deflection element that can be moved relative to the device. The deflection unit can, for example, be arranged adjacent to or on a guide element fixed within the device, and the movable deflection element can be moved relative to the guide element. The deflection element, as a movable element within the device, can cause a deflection of the individual forklift wheel segments.

[0026] In particular, the deflection unit is designed to deflect the deflectable forklift wheel segments relative to the fixed rotational axis of the rotating forklift wheel in such a way that the distance between the forklift wheel segments and the fixed rotational axis is (temporarily) reduced. In other words, the forklift wheel segments, for example at least a portion of the forklift wheel segments, can be deflected toward the interior of the forklift wheel and thus in the direction of the fixed rotational axis. This reduces the distance between at least the deflected portions of the forklift wheel segments. During their deflection, the forklift wheel segments can be virtually pressed toward the interior of the forklift wheel by the deflection unit.

[0027] In particular, the deflection unit can have a movable deflection element which can be transferred from a non-deflecting, i.e. passive, state (of the respective forklift wheel segment) into a deflecting, i.e. active, state (of the respective forklift wheel segment), wherein the deflection element (only) comes into contact with an individual one of the deflectable forklift wheel segments in the deflecting state in order to deflect this individual deflectable forklift wheel segment (from its normal position). In the non-deflecting state, the deflection element does not come into contact with any of the deflectable forklift wheel segments. In particular, in the deflecting state, the deflection element comes into contact with an individual one of the deflectable forklift wheel segments arranged along the circumference of the forklift wheel in order to deflect this forklift wheel segment, wherein the individual forklift wheel segment can have one or more deflectable and / or deformable forklift wheel fingers.

[0028] The deflection element can thus form a movable part of the deflection unit, which is movable relative to the forklift wheel. It can be provided that the deflection element, in the non-deflecting state, cannot touch the forklift wheel segment moving past and thus cannot deflect it. Furthermore, it can be provided that the deflection element can only touch the forklift wheel segment moving past and thus deflect it in the deflecting state. Upon contact or contact between the deflection element and the forklift wheel segment, the forklift wheel segment brushes or slides against the deflection element, since the forklift wheel segment moves along with the rotating forklift wheel.

[0029] The deflection unit can have an actuator that can transfer the deflection element from the non-deflecting state to the deflecting state. The actuator can be designed as a switching magnet, for example, a rotary magnet. The movable deflection element can be provided in the form of a movable plate or flap that is rotatably arranged relative to a non-movable part of the deflection unit and / or relative to the aforementioned guide element. In this case, a hinge movement can take place between the guide element and the deflection element in order to transfer the deflection element from the non-deflecting state to the deflecting state.

[0030] In particular, an outer side of the respective deflectable forklift wheel segment forms a rear boundary of the respective receiving area, or a boundary that trails the respective receiving area along the rotation direction of the forklift wheel. A forklift wheel segment leading the respective receiving area along the rotation direction of the forklift wheel, in particular its inner side or its freely movable end, defines a front boundary of the receiving area, or a boundary that leads the respective receiving area along the rotation direction of the forklift wheel. The freely movable end of the respective leading forklift wheel segment defines an outer end of the respective receiving area.

[0031] The forklift wheel segments can overlap in sections in the circumferential direction, whereby a receiving area of ​​a certain size is always formed by two adjacent forklift wheel segments (along the circumference of the forklift wheel). The previously mentioned inlet opening of the receiving area can be formed by the freely movable end or the inside of a first forklift wheel segment and the outside or rear of a subsequent, adjacent, second forklift wheel segment, which may be deflected by the deflection unit.

[0032] According to one embodiment, each forklift wheel segment of the plurality of deflectable forklift wheel segments comprises at least two deflectable and / or deformable forklift wheel fingers. The forklift wheel fingers are arranged, in particular, along the circumference of the forklift wheel at substantially the same azimuthal position of the forklift wheel and are spaced apart from one another along the rotational axis of the forklift wheel. The deflection unit is designed to simultaneously deflect the at least two forklift wheel fingers of the respective forklift wheel segment in order to change or enlarge the size or width of the receiving area assigned to the respective forklift wheel segment.

[0033] A forklift wheel segment can, for example, have four forklift wheel fingers, which together at least partially define the receiving area. The forklift wheel fingers can have freely movable ends. For example, the free ends or the inner sides of the forklift wheel fingers of the first forklift wheel segment form the upper boundary of a receiving area, and the outer sides or rear sides of the forklift wheel fingers of the second forklift wheel segment form the lower boundary of this receiving area. Other configurations of the forklift wheel segments are possible.

[0034] In particular, the receiving area defines an entry area of ​​the stacker wheel through which a valuable document can be fed into a stacker wheel compartment of the rotating stacker wheel. The entry area can be an entry opening. The entry area can have a specific size or width. The size or width of the entry area can be changed by deflecting a stacker wheel segment defining the receiving area.

[0035] In particular, the device further comprises a control unit designed to cause the deflection unit, in particular the movable deflection element, to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment, in particular to control the deflection unit such that a single forklift wheel segment of the plurality of forklift wheel segments is deflected. The control unit is designed to cause the deflection unit to transfer the respective forklift wheel segment from the non-deflecting state to the deflecting state in which it comes into contact with one of the deflectable forklift wheel segments in order to deflect it.

[0036] The control unit can be designed to decide for one or more (directly consecutive) value documents whether or not to cause the deflection unit to deflect the respective stacker wheel segment into whose assigned receiving area the respective value document is conveyed. In this case, the control unit can make the decision whether or not to cause the deflection unit to deflect the respective stacker wheel segment, e.g., depending on any deceleration that may occur of the respective value document conveyed into the stacker unit - and possibly also depending on the decelerations of other value documents conveyed into the stacker unit before the respective value document, e.g., based on their average deceleration.

[0037] The delay occurring in the respective valuable document is a temporal delay of the respective valuable document compared to an expected arrival time of the respective valuable document at a specific transport position of the valuable document, which lies in front of the stacking unit along the transport path of the valuable documents. The actual arrival time or delay of the respective valuable document conveyed into the stacking unit can be detected by means of a detection unit (e.g., a light barrier) arranged in front of the stacking unit along the transport path of the valuable document, in particular far enough in front of the stacking unit that the delay of the respective valuable document can be detected in time to initiate deflection if necessary.

[0038] The deflection of a forklift wheel segment to change the size of a receiving area assigned to the forklift wheel segment can occur as a function of the detected delay of the value document. The control unit can actuate the deflection unit so that the deflection element of the deflection unit is transferred to the deflected state in order to deflect the corresponding forklift wheel segment if it is determined that a value document is being transported with a delay (so that it arrives at the entry area of ​​the forklift wheel with a delay), i.e., the actual arrival time deviates from a target arrival time. The control unit can, if necessary, control the deflection unit.It can also be controlled so that the deflection element of the deflection unit remains in the non-deflecting state, thus preventing the corresponding stacker wheel segment from being deflected if it is determined that the detected position of one value document corresponds to the target position or deviates from it by only less than a predetermined threshold. In one example, the control unit can only distinguish between a deflection and a non-deflection of the stacker wheel segment and control the deflection unit accordingly.

[0039] According to one embodiment, the control unit is designed to variably control the deflection unit such that the respective stacker wheel segment of the plurality of deflectable stacker wheel segments is deflected by a variable deflection distance. The variable deflection distance can be preset by the operator or automatically determined by the control unit for the respective value document. The control unit can determine the variable deflection distance, for example, depending on the possible deceleration of the respective value document (and possibly depending on the decelerations of other value documents conveyed into the stacker wheel before the respective value document), for example based on their average deceleration value.

[0040] The control unit can actuate the deflection unit so that the deflection element of the deflection unit is transferred into the deflected state by a specific amount or angle corresponding to the deflection distance of the stacker wheel segment, in order to deflect the corresponding stacker wheel segment by the specified deflection distance if it is determined that a value document is arriving with a delay. The deflection distance can be set as a function of the precise current delay of the respective value document. For example, the delay is determined based on the arrival time of a leading edge of a value document at the detection device, whereby the time difference by which this deviates from the target arrival time is determined.

[0041] According to one embodiment, the receiving area for receiving the one value document is defined by an outer side or rear side of the individual deflected stacker wheel segment and an adjacent non-deflected stacker wheel segment.

[0042] Upon entering the receiving area, one of the valuable documents is guided past the outer or rear side of the deflected forklift wheel segment. The one valuable document is then guided past the freely movable end of the adjacent, non-deflected forklift wheel segment, which has already passed the deflection element.

[0043] The device according to the invention improves the stacking process and eliminates problems that conventionally accompany the synchronization of the individual receiving areas or stacker wheel compartments with the theoretical withdrawal time of the valuable documents. By enlarging a receiving area when feeding the valuable document, the insertion time window (pickup period) that remains for the successful feeding of the valuable document into the assigned receiving area can be extended. The deflection unit located at the inlet of the respective receiving area is designed so that the possible insertion area can be enlarged in such a way that a movable deflection element arranged radially to the stacker wheel prevents the elastically deformable stacker wheel segments from continuing to move on their original circular path, thus keeping the preceding receiving area open for longer.This can be controlled based on the arrival time of an asynchronous (e.g., delayed) valuable document. The arrival time of the leading edge of the valuable document at the detection device or transport light barrier of the preceding conveyor unit can be used as the control variable. A fast-switching magnet (e.g., a rotary magnet) can be used as the actuator to operate the deflection element.

[0044] The possible insertion area or the respective receiving area can be dynamically changed in size and, if necessary, brought to a maximum value. The period in which the insertion time window is available can be easily adjusted dynamically depending on the arrival time of the valuable document. This provides a control option for synchronizing the dynamic receiving area size or forklift wheel compartment size with the incoming valuable documents. The area or time window in which no forklift wheel compartment is available for insertion is reduced, since the closing of the previous receiving area and the opening of the subsequent receiving area occur dynamically through the elastic rebound of the respectively deflected forklift wheel segment to its starting position.

[0045] All valuable documents, especially those that arrive at the stacker wheel outside of a certain expected time (asynchronous valuable documents), can be stacked correctly. This ensures that the sequence of the valuable documents is maintained during stacking, which is important for header card operation. When used in a valuable document stacker, this can eliminate rejection reasons related to the incorrect arrival of the valuable documents at the stacker unit (e.g., asynchronously fed valuable documents, etc.).

[0046] The invention also relates to a method for stacking value documents with a stacking device as described above and below.

[0047] Further features of the invention emerge from the claims, the figures, and the following description. They show:

[0048] Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a device for stacking value documents according to an embodiment.

[0049] Fig. 2 shows a perspective detailed view of a deflection element of the device of Fig. 1 according to an embodiment.

[0050] Fig. 3 shows a deflection of a forklift wheel segment in a side view according to an embodiment.

[0051] Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of a device for stacking valuable documents with a static deflection element according to one embodiment. Fig. 5 shows a perspective view of a device for stacking valuable documents with the static deflection element from Fig. 4 during deflection of a stacker wheel segment according to one embodiment.

[0052] Fig. 6 shows a perspective view of a device for stacking value documents with a dynamically movable deflection element according to an embodiment.

[0053] Fig. 7 shows a perspective view of a device for stacking value documents with the dynamically movable deflection element from Fig. 6 during deflection of a stacker wheel segment according to an embodiment.

[0054] The representations in the figures are schematic and not to scale. Where the same reference symbols are used in different figures in the following description, they refer to identical or similar elements. Identical or similar elements may also be designated by different reference symbols.

[0055] Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a device 10 for stacking value documents 12, e.g. banknotes. The device 10 comprises a stacker unit 20 for stacking the value documents 12 and a conveyor unit 30 for conveying the value documents 12 into the stacker unit 20. The value documents 12 are fed individually one after the other at high speed to the device 10. The conveyor unit 30 has transport means which, in the example shown here, comprise conveyor belts or belts 31 and one or more conveyor belt rollers 32. The conveyor belts or belts 31 can be arranged in two layers, with an upper layer being arranged above the value document 12 and a lower layer being arranged below the value document 12, while the value document 12 is moved in the conveyor unit 30 to the stacker unit 20. In other words, the conveyor belts or straps 31 grip the valuable document 12 on both sides in order to transport it to the stacker unit 20.Of the conveyor unit 30 or the conveyor belts 31, only the section just before the stacker unit 20 is shown in the illustration. The upper layer of the conveyor belts or belts 31 can extend further above the stacker unit 20. The lower layer of the conveyor belts or belts 31 can branch off downward around the conveyor belt roller 32, so that the valuable documents 12 are guided further by a guide element 41 after passing the conveyor belt roller 32.

[0056] The stacker unit 20 is designed to receive the valuable documents 12 and, for this purpose, has a rotatable stacker wheel 22, or during operation of the device, rotating stacker wheel 22, with a plurality of receiving areas 26 into which the valuable documents 12 are inserted one after the other. In Fig. 1, only a few of these receiving areas 26 are labeled for illustrative purposes. The rotating stacker wheel 22 further has a plurality of deflectable stacker wheel segments 24, which are provided at a distance from one another along a circumference of the rotating stacker wheel 22. Here, too, only a few of the stacker wheel segments 24 are labeled for illustrative purposes. The deflectable stacker wheel segments 24 extend away from the interior of the stacker wheel 22 with a radial directional component and a circumferential directional component.The deflectable forklift wheel segments 24 can be elastically deformable, thereby enabling deflection of the forklift wheel segments 24 from their non-deflected state to a deflected state and back again. The deflectable forklift wheel segments 24 each define one of the receiving areas 26. For example, two adjacent deflectable forklift wheel segments 24 define an intermediate receiving area 26.

[0057] The receiving areas 26 form the area into which the value documents 12 are individually inserted during operation of the device 10. It can be provided that only a single value document 12 is inserted into the respective receiving area 26, and that a value document 12 is only inserted into this one receiving area 26 upon the next rotation of the stacker wheel 22. The receiving area 26 can form an inlet opening that provides access for the value document 12 to a stacker wheel compartment 28. Each receiving area 26 forms the outer end of a stacker wheel compartment 28 into which the individual value documents 12 are inserted for stacking. The stacker wheel compartments 28 can be formed spirally in the stacker wheel 22, as can be clearly seen in Fig. 1. The rotating stacker wheel 22 comprises a rotation axis 70 fixed to a base plate (see Fig. 1) of the device 10, around which the stacker wheel 22 can rotate continuously.

[0058] The device 10 further comprises a deflection unit 40, which is designed to deflect the forklift wheel segments 24 individually one after the other in order to thus change the size of a receiving area 26 assigned to a forklift wheel segment 24. The deflection unit 40 has a movable deflection element 42, which is movable relative to the device 10. The movable deflection element 42 is arranged adjacent to the guide element 41 and is rotatably fastened thereto. The guide element 41 can also be fixed to the base plate shown in Fig. 1. In the configuration shown in Fig. 1, the deflection element 42 can be moved or deflected in the direction of the forklift wheel interior 23 in order to thus deflect a forklift wheel segment 24 moving past the deflection unit 40 in the direction of the forklift wheel interior 23.This reduces the distance between the forklift wheel segment 24 and the fixed rotation axis 70, which in turn enlarges the receiving area 26 associated with the forklift wheel segment 24, which is located above an upwardly directed outer side of the forklift wheel segment 24. This relationship will be explained in more detail below.

[0059] The device further comprises a control unit 60 configured to control the deflection unit 40 in order to deflect the stacker wheel segments 24 arriving at the deflection unit 40 during rotation, possibly depending on a time delay of the respective value document 12. For this purpose, the control unit 60 can be coupled via a wired and / or wireless signal connection to an actuator of the deflection unit 40, which actuator is mounted on the rear side of the base plate shown in Fig. 1 (not visible in the figures).

[0060] The device 10 optionally has a detection unit 50, which can be provided in the form of a light barrier. The detection unit 50 provides information about the time delay of one or more value documents 12, which is then used by the control unit 60 to decide whether a deflection of a forklift wheel segment 24 should occur or not, and if necessary, by which deflection distance the forklift wheel segment 24 should be deflected. The control unit 60 can therefore also control the deflection unit 40 such that the forklift wheel segment 24 currently moving past the deflection unit 40 is deflected by a predetermined deflection distance, wherein the predetermined deflection distance is dependent on the detected time delay of the respective value document 12. The time delay of the value document 12 is considered in comparison to an expected arrival time of the respective value document at the detection unit 50.

[0061] Fig. 2 shows a perspective detailed view of the deflection element 40 of the device 10 of Fig. 1. The deflection element 42 can have a movable plate that is rotatably attached to the guide element 41. The deflection element 42 then has a free end that can be moved in the direction of the stacker wheel 22, thus ultimately deflecting the stacker wheel segment 24b moving past at that time. The deflection element 42 can be actuated by an actuator, e.g., mechanically or magnetically, to move downward. The arrow shown in Fig. 2 indicates the direction of movement of the deflection element 42 during its deflection.

[0062] Fig. 2 shows a first forklift wheel segment 24a with a first associated receiving area 26a and a second forklift wheel segment 24b with a second associated receiving area 26b. The second receiving area 26b is formed by an outer side 27b or rear side 27b of the second forklift wheel segment 24b and a freely movable end 25a or the inner side of the first forklift wheel segment 24a (see Fig. 3). At the moment shown in Fig. 2, the first forklift wheel segment 24a has already moved past the deflection unit 24 immediately in front of the second forklift wheel segment 24b. Fig. 2 thus shows the time of deflection of the second forklift wheel segment 24b, which is thus pushed towards the interior of the forklift wheel. The deflection element 42 comes into contact with the second forklift wheel segment 24b and thereby exerts a force on the second forklift wheel segment 24b in order to push it towards the inside of the forklift wheel.In order to minimize wear on both the free ends of the forklift wheel segments 24 and on the deflection element 42, a free-running roller can be provided at the end of the deflection element 42.

[0063] As can also be seen from Fig. 2, each forklift wheel segment 24a, 24b has one or more forklift wheel fingers 241, 242, 243, 244. Upon deflection of an individual forklift wheel segment 24a, 24b, the deflection element 42 deflects all forklift wheel fingers 241,

[0064] 242, 243, 244 of the forklift wheel segment 24a, 24b moving past the deflection element 42, in order to increase the size of the respectively assigned receiving area 26a, 26b. At the moment shown in Fig. 2, the second forklift wheel segment 24b and thus all forklift wheel fingers 241, 242, 243, 244 of the second forklift wheel segment 24b are deflected by the deflection element 42. This deflection increases the distance between the free ends of the forklift wheel fingers 241, 242,

[0065] 243, 244 of the first stacker wheel segment 24a and the outer sides or rear sides of the stacker wheel fingers 241, 242, 243, 244 of the second stacker wheel segment 24b, which results in the second receiving area 26b, in particular its inlet opening, being enlarged. This, in turn, results in the second receiving area 26b remaining open longer for the feeding of a value document 12. As a result, a value document 12 that arrives at the second receiving area 26b with a delay or delay can still safely enter the second receiving area 26b, which remains open.

[0066] With reference to Fig. 2, it should also be noted that, in a special exemplary embodiment, the deflection unit 40 can deflect the first forklift wheel segment 24a and the second forklift wheel segment 24b one after the other in such a way that the size of the first receiving area 26a upon deflection of the first forklift wheel segment 24a differs from the size of the second receiving area 26b upon deflection of the second forklift wheel segment 24b. In other words, the deflection unit can individually adjust the size of the receiving areas 26a, 26b to be set. Thus, each forklift wheel segment 24a, 24b can be deflected by a different distance. In Fig. 3, the deflection of the second forklift wheel segment 24b by the deflection element 42 of the deflection unit 40, as described above, is shown in more detail in a side view. In particular, the first forklift wheel segment 24a and the second forklift wheel segment 24b are each shown at least partially in Fig. 3.The second receiving area 26b, associated with the second stacker wheel segment 24b, is located between the first stacker wheel segment 24a and the second stacker wheel segment 24b. It can be seen that a portion of the outer side or front side 27b of the second stacker wheel segment 24b, together with the inner side or free end 25a of the first stacker wheel segment 24a, defines the second receiving area 26b. The illustrated deflection of the second stacker wheel segment 24b allows the second receiving area 26b to be enlarged, thus allowing more time for the value document (not shown) to be fed into the second receiving area 26b.

[0067] Fig. 3 shows the second forklift wheel segment 24b in the deflected state 46 (solid line) and additionally in a non-deflected state 44 (dashed line). The non-deflected state 44 corresponds to the state that the second forklift wheel segment 24b would assume if it were not deflected by the deflection element 42 of the deflection unit 40. This means that the non-deflected state 44 corresponds to the initial position or normal position of the second forklift wheel segment 24b. The deflection of the second forklift wheel segment 24b from the non-deflected state 44 to the deflected state 46 leads to an elastic bending or deformation of the second forklift wheel segment 24b, whereby a displacement of the second forklift wheel segment 24b by a deflection distance d in the direction of the forklift wheel interior (not shown here) occurs.The deflection distance d can, for example, define a radial displacement of the free end of the second stacker wheel segment 24b with respect to the rotating stacker wheel 22.

[0068] The control unit 60, already described with reference to Fig. 1, can be designed to control the deflection unit 40 in order to deflect the second stacker wheel segment 24b by a predetermined deflection distance d. The predetermined deflection distance d depends on the detected position of the value document 12, as determined by the detection unit 50, also already described, before entry into the stacker unit 20 (see Fig. 1). The control unit 60 can control the deflection unit 40 such that the deflection element 42 of the deflection unit 40 is transferred into a deflected state by a specific angle corresponding to the deflection distance d, in order to thus deflect the second stacker wheel segment 24b shown in Fig. 3 by the predetermined deflection distance d if it has been determined that the value document 12 will arrive in the receiving area 26b with a delay.The deflection distance d can therefore be set as a function of the time delay of the value document 12 in the conveyor unit 30. For example, the delay is determined based on the arrival of the leading edge 13 of the value document 12 (see Fig. 1) at the detection unit 50.

[0069] Figures 4 and 5 each show a perspective view of the device 10 from Fig. 1 with a statically arranged deflection element 42 of the deflection unit 40. During operation of the device 10, the position of the static deflection element is fixed. Fig. 4 shows a point in time at which the valuable document 12 is just leaving the conveyor unit 30 and entering the stacker unit 20. Fig. 4 shows in particular the statically arranged deflection element 42, wherein the second stacker wheel segment 24b, which is just approaching the deflection element 42, is still in the non-deflected state 44. This means that the second stacker wheel segment 24b has not yet reached the deflection element 42 and is therefore immediately before contact with the deflection element 42.The first forklift wheel segment 24a, which has already passed the deflection element 42, has elastically returned to its normal position after its deflection and is therefore also in a non-deflected state. In this state or at this point in time, the size of the first receiving area 26a and the size of the second receiving area 26b are still the same, since none of the forklift wheel segments 24a, 24b assigned to these receiving areas 26a, 26b is deflected. Both forklift wheel segments 24a, 24b are essentially in their undeformed starting position. However, the deflection element 42 is arranged such that the second forklift wheel segment 24b will come into contact with the deflection element 42 at a certain point in time, causing the second forklift wheel segment 24b to be deflected.In other words, the deflection element 42 is fixedly mounted in the device 10 such that it contacts all of the forklift wheel segments 24 of the forklift wheel 22, one after the other, for a specific period of time during the forklift wheel rotation in order to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment 24 moving past it. However, since the deflection element 42 is fixedly mounted in the device 10 and cannot move itself, each forklift wheel segment 24 experiences the same deflection. This means that each forklift wheel segment 24 is deflected by the same deflection distance toward the inner region 23 of the forklift wheel 22.

[0070] The position of the static deflection element 42 can be non-adjustable or adjustable, but still have a fixed preset. This preset can be performed, for example, when the operation of the device 10 is interrupted in order to find an optimal position of the deflection element 42. The adjustment can be performed manually or automatically.

[0071] Fig. 5 shows a point in time at which the value document 12 is just leaving the conveyor unit 30 and entering the stacker unit 20 of the device 10. In particular, Fig. 5 shows the statically arranged deflection element 42 at a point in time that immediately follows the point in time shown in Fig. 4, wherein the passing second stacker wheel segment 24b is now in the deflected state 46. This means that the second stacker wheel segment 24b has meanwhile reached the deflection element 42 and is thus in contact with the deflection element 42. The first stacker wheel segment 24a has already passed the deflection element 42 and is still in a non-deflected state. In this state orAt this time, the size of the first receiving area 26a and the size of the second receiving area 26b are different, since the second forklift wheel segment 24b assigned to the second receiving area 26b is in the deflected state 46 and the forklift wheel segment 24a assigned to the first receiving area 26a is not deflected.

[0072] Figures 6 and 7 each show a perspective view of the device 10 from Fig. 1 with a dynamically movable deflection element 42 of the deflection unit 40. The embodiment shown in Figures 6 and 7 can be an alternative embodiment to the embodiment shown in Figures 4 and 5.

[0073] Fig. 6 initially shows a point in time at which the valuable document 12 is just leaving the conveyor unit 30 and entering the stacker unit 20. Fig. 6 shows, in particular, the dynamically movable deflection element 42, wherein the second stacker wheel segment 24b moving past is still in the non-deflected state 44. This means that the second stacker wheel segment 24b has not yet reached the deflection element 42 and is thus immediately before contact with the deflection element 42. The first stacker wheel segment 24a has already passed the deflection element 42 and is therefore in a non-deflected state. In this state or at this point in time, the size of the first receiving area 26a and the size of the second receiving area 26b are still the same, since none of the stacker wheel segments 24a, 24b assigned to these receiving areas 26a, 26b is deflected. Both forklift wheel segments 24a, 24b are virtually in their undeformed starting position.

[0074] In the example shown here, the dynamically movable deflection element 42 is designed to be movable, i.e., displaceable or rotatable relative to the guide element 41 or the device 10. At a specific point in time, when the second forklift wheel segment 24b is within reach of the deflection element and the first forklift wheel segment 24a is out of reach of the deflection element, the deflection element 42 is actively moved, displaced, or rotated, for example, by the control unit 60 described in Fig. 1, in order to specifically establish contact with the second forklift wheel segment 24b, thereby deflecting the second forklift wheel segment 24b.In other words, the deflection element 42 is movably mounted in the device 10 such that it can selectively contact the individual forklift wheel segments 24 of the forklift wheel 22 moving past for a specific period of time or not, in order to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment 24 by a deflection distance, e.g., only certain or all of the forklift wheel segments 24. This deflection distance can be a fixed, predetermined deflection distance that is selected to be the same for each of the deflected forklift wheel segments, or it can be selected individually (for each forklift wheel segment). In other words, a decision can be made dynamically and individually for the respective value document 12 between deflecting or not deflecting the deflection element 42.In addition, an angle of the deflection element 42 corresponding to the deflection distance can also be individually selected for the respective valuable document 12, for example, depending on the deceleration of the respective valuable document in front of the stacker wheel 22. To ensure that each stacker wheel segment 24 can be individually deflected, the deflection element 42 is mounted in the device 10 so that it can be moved, displaced, or rotated stepwise or continuously. Each stacker wheel segment 24 can then be deflected by a different deflection distance toward the inner region 23 of the stacker wheel 22.

[0075] The deflection element 42 can therefore be actively and dynamically movable by means of the control unit 60 in order to select the position of the deflection element 42 individually for the respective value document 12, if necessary depending on or as a function of the deceleration of the respective value document 12 in front of the stacker wheel 22 determined by the detection unit 50.

[0076] In order to determine the fixed deflection distance of the dynamically movable deflection element 42, an optimal position of the deflection element 42 can be determined during ongoing test operation of the device 10, in which the stack formation by the stacker wheel is most reliable.

[0077] Fig. 7 shows a point in time at which the value document 12 is just leaving the conveyor unit 30 and entering the stacker unit 20 of the device 10. In particular, Fig. 7 shows the dynamically movable deflection element 42 at a point in time that immediately follows the point in time shown in Fig. 6, wherein the second stacker wheel segment 24b moving past is now in the deflected state 46. This means that the second stacker wheel segment 24b has meanwhile reached the deflection element 42 and is thus in contact with the deflection element 42. The first stacker wheel segment 24a may or may not have been deflected, but is in any case in the non-deflected state at this point in time. In this state orAt this time, the size of the first receiving area 26a and the size of the second receiving area 26b are different, since the forklift wheel segment 24b assigned to the second receiving area 26b is deflected and the forklift wheel segment 24a assigned to the first receiving area 26a is not deflected.

Claims

patent claims 1. Device (10) for stacking valuable documents (12), comprising: a stacking unit (20) for receiving the valuable documents (12); optionally a conveying unit (30) for conveying the valuable documents (12) into the stacking unit (20); wherein the stacking unit (20) comprises a rotatable stacking wheel (22) for receiving the valuable documents (12); wherein the rotatable stacking wheel (22) has a plurality of deflectable stacking wheel segments (24) which are spaced apart from one another along a circumference of the rotatable stacking wheel (22); wherein the deflectable stacking wheel segments (24) each define a receiving area (26) for receiving one of the valuable documents (12) conveyed into the stacking unit (20); and a deflection unit (40) designed to deflect each of the forklift wheel segments (24) individually in order to change the size of each of the receiving areas (26) assigned to a forklift wheel segment (24).

2. Device (10) according to claim 1, wherein the deflection unit (40) is designed to deflect the forklift wheel segments (24) arranged along a circumference of the rotatable forklift wheel (22), in particular some or each of the deflectable forklift wheel segments (24) of the rotatable forklift wheel (22), successively and thereby change the size of the receiving area (26) assigned to the respective forklift wheel segment.

3. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the plurality of forklift wheel segments (24) comprises a first forklift wheel segment (24a) with a first associated receiving area (26a) and a second forklift wheel segment (24b) with a second associated receiving area (26b), which are spaced apart from each other along the circumference of the rotatable forklift wheel (22); wherein the deflection unit (40) is designed to deflect the first forklift wheel segment (24a) and the second forklift wheel segment (24b) successively in such a way that a size, in particular width, of the first receiving area (26a) when the first forklift wheel segment (24a) is deflected differs from a size, in particular width, of the second receiving area (26b) when the second forklift wheel segment (24b) is deflected.

4. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the deflection unit (40) is designed to deflect the deflectable forklift wheel segments (24) in the direction of an interior area (23) of the rotating forklift wheel (22), in particular with a radial directional component towards the axis of rotation of the forklift wheel.

5. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the rotatable forklift wheel (22) has a rotation axis (70) fixed within the device (10), and wherein the forklift wheel (22) and thus the deflectable forklift wheel segments (24) provided on the circumference of the forklift wheel (22) are rotatable about the fixed rotation axis (70) at a predefinable rotation speed, and wherein the deflection unit (40) is designed to deflect the deflectable forklift wheel segments (24) relative to the fixed rotation axis (70) of the rotating forklift wheel (22) in such a way that the distance between the forklift wheel segments (24) and the fixed rotation axis (70) is reduced.

6. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the deflection unit (40) has a static deflection element (42) which is arranged such that, during rotation of the forklift wheel (22), it successively comes into contact with each of the deflectable forklift wheel segments (24) of the rotatable forklift wheel (22). comes to deflect it and thereby change the size of the receiving area (26) assigned to the respective forklift wheel segment.

7. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the deflection unit (40) has a movable deflection element (42) which can be moved from a non-deflection state to a deflection state, wherein the deflection element (42) in the deflection state comes into contact with one of the deflectable forklift wheel segments (24) in order to deflect this deflectable forklift wheel segment (24).

8. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein an outer surface (27) of the respective deflectable forklift wheel segment (24) defines a rear boundary of the respective receiving area (26) or a boundary trailing along the direction of rotation of the forklift wheel, and wherein a forklift wheel segment leading ahead of the respective receiving area along the direction of rotation of the forklift wheel defines a front boundary of the receiving area (26) or a boundary leading ahead of the respective receiving area along the direction of rotation of the forklift wheel.

9. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein each forklift wheel segment (24) of the plurality of deflectable forklift wheel segments (24) comprises at least two forklift wheel fingers (241, 242, 243, 244) which are arranged in particular along the circumference of the forklift wheel at substantially the same azimuthal position of the forklift wheel and are spaced apart from each other along the axis of rotation of the forklift wheel; wherein the deflection unit (40) is designed to deflect the at least two forklift wheel fingers (241, 242, 243, 244) of the respective forklift wheel segment (24a, 24b) simultaneously.

10. Device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising: a control unit (60) configured to cause the deflection unit (40), in particular the movable deflection element, to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment, wherein the control unit is configured in particular to decide for one or more valuable documents whether or not to cause the deflection unit (40) to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment (24b) into whose associated receiving area the respective valuable document is conveyed.

11. Device (10) according to claim 10, wherein the control unit makes the decision whether to cause the deflection unit (40) to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment or not, depending on any time delay that may occur of the respective security document (12) transported into the forklift unit, and possibly depending on the time delays of other security documents transported into the forklift unit before the respective security document.

12. Device (10) according to one of claims 10 to 11, wherein the deflection unit (40), in particular the movable deflection element, is configured to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment (24b) by a variable deflection distance (d) and the control unit (60) is configured to control the deflection unit (40) variably in such a way as to deflect the respective forklift wheel segment (24b) by the variable deflection distance (d), wherein the control unit determines the variable deflection distance (d) in particular depending on the time delay of the respective valuable document (12) transported into the forklift unit, and possibly depending on the time delays of further valuable documents transported into the forklift unit before the respective valuable document.

13. Security document processing device with - a stacking device (10) for stacking valuable documents (12) according to one of the preceding claims and - a device for separating valuable documents from an output stack and for feeding the separated valuable documents to the stacking device (10).

14. Method for stacking valuable documents (12), in particular with a device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising the steps: - Transporting valuable documents (12) individually and successively to a stacker unit (20) which includes a rotating stacker wheel (22) for receiving the valuable documents (12), wherein the rotating stacker wheel (22) has a plurality of deflectable stacker wheel segments (24) which are spaced apart from each other along a circumference of the rotating stacker wheel (22), wherein the deflectable stacker wheel segments (24) each define a receiving area (26) for receiving one of the valuable documents (12) transported into the stacker unit (20), and - Deflecting one of the forklift wheel segments (24) by means of a deflection unit (40) in order to change the size of a receiving area (26) of the forklift wheel associated with the forklift wheel segment (24), and - Transfer each of the valuable documents transported to the forklift unit into the forklift unit, in particular into the receiving area of ​​the forklift wheel assigned to the respective deflected forklift wheel segment.

15. Method according to claim 14, wherein by deflecting the respective forklift wheel segment, the size, in particular width, of the receiving area assigned to the respective forklift wheel segment, into which the respective security document is conveyed, is increased.

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