Paper sheet storage device

Abstract

To provide a paper sheet storage device in a simple mechanism for storing paper sheets conveyed by operation of an air flow to a storage section.SOLUTION: A paper sheet storage device includes: a collection passage 111 for receiving and stopping a conveyed paper sheet; an opening 115c that is provided in sidewalls 115a, b of the collection passage that faces one space of a stopped paper sheet and can pass the paper sheet if it is curved; a storage section 90 of a paper sheet that is provided adjacently to the sidewalls while the inside communicates with the inside of the collection passage via the opening; a pressing plate 92 that is urged by a spring from a deep side of the storage section to the opening; and a pushing section (movable wall) 117a that advances into the storage section through the opening from a sidewall side of the collection passage that faces the other space of a stopped paper sheet and pushes the paper sheet into the storage section against the pressing plate, and then is displaced so as to return to an original position. The paper sheet pressed into the storage section returns to a flat shape and is retained between the sidewall in which the opening is located and the pressing plate.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 44

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to The present invention relates to a paper sheet storage device that collects and stores paper sheets conveyed by the action of an air flow.

Background Art

[0002] Inside a gaming machine island that houses a plurality of sets of a combination of a gaming ball lending machine that accepts the insertion of paper money and lends gaming balls (such as pachinko balls) to players and a gaming machine such as a pachinko machine, there is a paper money conveyance device that conveys the paper money inserted into each gaming ball lending machine to a safe provided at the end of the gaming machine island, provided along the longitudinal direction of the gaming machine island.

[0003] Some paper sheet conveyance devices for conveying paper sheets such as paper money utilize an air flow generated inside a conveyance pipe. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a paper sheet conveyance device that conveys paper sheets by pushing them from behind with a conveyance assist body that moves in response to the air flow inside the conveyance pipe.

[0004] In the paper sheet conveyance device disclosed in Patent Document 1, a paper sheet intake device is provided in the middle of the conveyance path to take in the paper sheets to be conveyed into the conveyance pipe. When recovering the taken-in paper sheets, the conveyance assist body is sent into the conveyance pipe by a conveyance assist body insertion device provided on the starting end side of the conveyance pipe, and the paper sheets and the conveyance assist body are separated and recovered by a separation and recovery device provided on the terminal end side of the conveyance pipe. Also, in this paper sheet conveyance device, the conveyance pipe is configured to go around a desired recovery path (for example, in a gaming machine island, it is composed of an outbound path from one end of the island to the other end, a U-shaped folding part, and a return path from the other end of the island back to the one end), the starting end part and the terminal end part of the conveyance pipe are brought close to each other, and the conveyance assist body recovered by the separation and recovery device provided at the terminal end is moved to the conveyance assist body insertion device at the starting end and repeatedly used in a cyclic manner. The recovered paper sheets are stored in a safe or the like.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] When a paper sheet taking-in device is provided in the middle of a conveyance path to take in the paper sheets to be conveyed into a conveyance pipe, the air flow in the conveyance pipe is likely to leak from the paper sheet taking-in port of the taking-in device. Even if a shutter that is normally closed and opened only when taking in paper sheets is provided at the taking-in port, it is difficult to sufficiently prevent the leakage of the air flow. Therefore, there has been a risk that the air flow generated by the air flow generating device provided at the start end of the conveyance path cannot flow to the end of the conveyance path with a strength sufficient to ensure sufficient conveyance capacity. In particular, this possibility is high when the conveyance path is long or when many taking-in devices are inserted in the middle of the conveyance path. Also, in order to convey the paper sheets separated from the air flow at the end of the conveyance path to a safe (storage section), belt conveyance or the like has been used, but simplification of the mechanism related to storage in the safe is also desired.

[0007] The present invention aims to solve the above problems, An object of the present invention is to provide a paper sheet storage device having a simplified mechanism for storing paper sheets conveyed by the action of an air flow in a storage section. 。

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] The gist of the present invention for achieving such an object lies in the inventions of the following respective items.

[0009] [1] A recovery passage that receives and stops the paper sheets conveyed by the action of the air flow; An opening provided on a side wall facing one paper surface of the stopped paper sheets in the recovery passage, the opening being passable if the paper sheets are curved; A storage section for paper sheets provided adjacent to the side wall, the interior of which communicates with the inside of the recovery passage through the opening; A pressing plate biased from the back side of the storage section toward the opening to cover the opening; A pushing-in section that advances into the storage section through the opening from the side wall side facing the other paper surface of the stopped paper sheets in the recovery passage, pushes the paper sheets into the storage section against the pressing plate, and then displaces back to the original position; and The paper sheets pushed into the storage section flatten and are held between the side wall with the opening and the pressing plate. A paper sheet storage device characterized by the above.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

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Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an outline of the gaming machine island 2 including the paper sheet conveying device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of the paper sheet conveying device 10 provided in the gaming machine island 2. In the present embodiment, the gaming machine island 2 is a combination of a gaming medium lending machine 3 that receives the insertion of bills and lends gaming media such as gaming balls (pachinko balls) to players and a gaming machine 4 such as a pachinko machine. A plurality of sets are accommodated side - by - side on the front and back surfaces so that they are back - to - back with each other. The paper sheet conveying device 10 is provided in the gaming machine island 2 and functions to take in the bills 6 discharged from the back of each gaming medium lending machine 3 and convey them to a safe (storage part) in the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 provided at one end of the gaming machine island 2 for storage.

[0014] The paper sheet conveying device 10 generates an air flow in a conveying pipe 12 that serves as a conveying path for banknotes (paper sheets), and inserts a conveying auxiliary body 16 that moves inside the conveying pipe 12 by receiving the air flow into the conveying pipe 12 upstream of the banknote 6 to be conveyed. The conveying auxiliary body 16 pushes the banknote 6 inside the conveying pipe 12 from behind and conveys it downstream. In the present embodiment, the banknote 6 is conveyed in a horizontally long posture with the paper surface standing as shown in FIG. 3 inside the conveying pipe 12.

[0015] The paper sheet conveying device 10 includes a conveying pipe 12 and a separation, collection, and delivery device 40 provided at one end of the gaming machine island 2. The conveying pipe 12 includes an upstream path 12a extending from the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 provided at one end of the gaming machine island 2 to the other end of the gaming machine island 2, a turn portion 12b that turns in a U shape at the other end, and a return path 12c that extends above the upstream path 12a along the upstream path 12a and returns to the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 after turning at the turn portion 12b.

[0016] The upstream path 12a and the return path 12c of the conveying pipe 12 are divided into units of a predetermined length, for example, a length corresponding to the width of one set of the gaming machine 4 and the gaming medium lending machine 3 installed side by side in the gaming machine island 2. By connecting the required number of these with a connecting unit, the path length can be adjusted according to the longitudinal length of the gaming machine island 2. Also, at the construction site, the conveying pipe 12 is cut on-site to the required length and used.

[0017] The paper sheet conveying device 10 further includes a taking-in device 13 that is inserted in the middle of the return path 12c of the conveying pipe 12 and takes in the banknote 6 discharged from the gaming medium lending machine 3 into the conveying pipe 12. The taking-in device 13 is provided such that one for taking in the banknote 6 from the gaming medium lending machine 3 arranged on the front surface side of the gaming machine island 2 and one for taking in the banknote 6 from the gaming medium lending machine 3 arranged on the back surface side of the gaming machine island 2 are paired. The taking-in device 13 is interposed between and connects the conveying pipes 12 that constitute the return path 12c, and functions as a conveying pipe that forms a part of the return path 12c.

[0018] Also, an airflow enhancement unit 14 for merging the airflow from the auxiliary blower and enhancing the airflow in the transport pipe is inserted at an appropriate position in the middle of the transport pipe 12. Here, the airflow enhancement unit 14 is provided in the middle of the return path 12c and downstream of the intake device 13. The airflow enhancement unit 14 may be in the forward path 12a.

[0019] The separation, recovery, and delivery device 40 functions to send an airflow into the transport pipe 12, send the transport auxiliary body 16 from the start end of the transport pipe 12 into the transport pipe 12, separate the banknote 6 transported by the transport auxiliary body 16 from the transport auxiliary body 16 at the end of the transport pipe 12, move the separated transport auxiliary body 16 to the start end side of the transport pipe 12 for reuse in the next delivery, and put the separated banknote 6 into a safe (storage section) for storage. Details of the separation, recovery, and delivery device 40 will be described later.

[0020] In the sheet conveyance device 10, the banknote 6 taken into the return path 12c of the transport pipe 12 from the intake device 13 stays at the intake completion position in a horizontally long posture with the paper surface standing upright as shown in FIG. 3. The separation, recovery, and delivery device 40 generates an airflow in the transport pipe 12 to transport and recover this banknote 6 to the separation, recovery, and delivery device 40 at the island end.

[0021] Due to the action of this airflow, the transport auxiliary body 16 is sent out from the separation, recovery, and delivery device 40 into the transport pipe 12. The sent-out transport auxiliary body 16 moves in the forward path 12a to the turning section 12b, makes a U-turn at the turning section 12b, and then further moves in the return path 12c toward the end portion. At this time, as shown in FIG. 3, the banknote 6 in the transport pipe 12 is transported toward the end portion of the transport pipe 12 (in the transport direction F in the figure) by the transport auxiliary body 16 pushing and moving the banknote 6 from the rear end side of the banknote 6.

[0022] In this way, the conveying auxiliary body 16 moves under the action of the air flow, and the banknote 6 is pushed and moved from the rear end side by this conveying auxiliary body 16 for conveying. Therefore, the banknote 6 itself does not need to receive the air flow to obtain propulsion force. Accordingly, the banknote 6 can be conveyed by the air flow without taking measures such as bending the banknote 6 to receive the air flow. Further, since the conveying auxiliary body 16 can obtain propulsion force from the air flow more efficiently than the banknote 6, the banknote 6 can be conveyed efficiently.

[0023] Next, the shapes of the conveying pipe 12 and the conveying auxiliary body 16 will be described in detail.

[0024] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the conveying pipe 12 in the straight portion (the portions of the forward path 12a and the return path 12c), and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the extending direction F (= the banknote conveying direction F = the air flow direction) of the conveying pipe 12 in the same portion. The conveying pipe 12 is formed of a resin having a thickness of about 1.5 mm. The conveying pipe 12 is formed, for example, by extrusion molding.

[0025] The cross-sectional shape of the cross-section perpendicular to the extending direction F of the straight portion of the conveying pipe 12 forms a shape in which the central portions of the left and right side walls of the vertically long rectangle are expanded outward in a rectangular shape. Specifically, the conveying pipe 12 includes upper and lower wall portions 31, left and right side wall portions 32, and an expansion portion 33 that projects outward in a rectangular shape at the central portion in the vertical direction of the left and right side wall portions 32. In addition, in a substantially rectangular cross-section perpendicular to the extending direction (conveying direction F) of the conveying pipe 12, the short side direction is defined as the X direction (or the width direction, the left-right direction), and the long side direction is defined as the Y direction (or the height direction, the up-down direction). The direction toward the center of the conveying pipe 12 in each of the X direction and the Y direction is referred to as the inner side, and the direction from the center to the inner wall is referred to as the outer side. In the present embodiment, the conveying pipe 12 is used in a direction in which the long side in its cross-section is in the up-down direction, but it may be used in a direction in which the short side is in the up-down direction. In this case, the banknote 6 is conveyed in a horizontally long posture with the paper surface facing up and down.

[0026] The extension part 33 is divided into upper and lower parts by a partition wall 34 erected in the inner direction of the transport pipe 12. The transport pipe 12, including the partition wall 34, has an integral structure as a whole. In the extension part 33, position regulating ribs 36 protruding in the inner direction of the transport pipe 12 are provided at the centers of the areas divided into two by the partition wall 34. The position regulating ribs 36 function to regulate the position of the transport auxiliary body 16 in the X direction within the transport pipe 12.

[0027] On the side wall part 32, a plurality of ribs 35 protruding in the inner direction of the transport pipe 12 are formed to extend along the transport direction. In this example, ribs 35 protruding inward of the transport pipe 12 are formed along the transport direction at the boundary between the side wall part 32 and the extension part 33. The partition wall 34 has the same height as the ribs 35, and the top of the partition wall 34 functions as a rib. Hereinafter, when the partition wall 34 is treated as a rib, it is also denoted as rib 34.

[0028] The side wall part 32 is a pair of inner walls facing the paper surface of the banknote 6 being transported. The banknote 6 is rectangular and is transported within the transport pipe 12 in such a direction that the long side is in the transport direction F. In other words, the paper surface faces the side wall part 32 of the transport pipe 12, and one short side of the banknote 6 is on the front end side of the transport direction and the other short side is on the rear end side.

[0029] The interval Dy between the upper and lower wall parts 31 of the transport pipe 12 is slightly longer than the short side of the banknote 6. Also, the interval Dx between the left and right side wall parts 32 (the part where no ribs 35, extension parts 33, or partition walls 34 are formed (referred to as the reference plane part)) is set to about 21 mm. The extension parts 33 provided on the left and right side wall parts 32 each extend about 7.5 mm outward from the side wall part 32 (reference plane part). The tops of the ribs 35 and the partition wall 34 are at a height of about 2 mm inward from the side wall part 32 (reference plane part). The height of the ribs 35 can be set as appropriate.

[0030] Figure 6 shows the plan view and front view of the conveying auxiliary body 16. The conveying auxiliary body 16 has a columnar shape with a circular cross-section having different diameters at each part. The conveying auxiliary body 16 is arranged with its axis perpendicular to the conveying direction and moves inside the conveying pipe. Here, it is inserted and used in the conveying pipe 12 such that the central axis of the cylinder is in the Y direction (height direction) of the conveying pipe 12. The conveying auxiliary body 16 has a vertically symmetric shape, and from top to bottom, it successively includes a head 16a, a neck 16b with a slightly smaller diameter than the head, a large-diameter part 16c with a larger diameter than the head 16a, a constricted part 16d having the same diameter as the neck 16b and located at the vertical center, the large-diameter part 16c, the neck 16b, and the head 16a.

[0031] The shapes of the conveying pipe 12 and the conveying auxiliary body 16 are not limited to this. The outer shape of the conveying auxiliary body 16 conforms to the inner shape of the conveying pipe 12 and has irregularities corresponding to the ribs 34 and 35 protruding inward from the side wall part 32.

[0032] The conveying auxiliary body 16 is lightweight and strong. For example, its interior is formed as a cavity by plastic or the like. Note that as long as it is lightweight and strong, it may be formed by expanded polystyrene, extruded expanded polystyrene, or the like.

[0033] Figure 7 shows a cross-section perpendicular to the extending direction F and passing through the central axis of the conveying auxiliary body 16 in a state where the conveying auxiliary body 16 is inserted into the conveying pipe 12. The diameter of each part of the conveying auxiliary body 16 corresponds to the inner edge shape of the conveying pipe 12. That is, the cross-sectional shape passing through the central axis of the conveying auxiliary body 16 corresponds to the inner edge shape of the conveying pipe 12 in a cross-section perpendicular to the extending direction F, and it has a shape that almost closes the inside of the conveying pipe 12 with a predetermined clearance from the inner wall.

[0034] The position of the conveying auxiliary body 16 in the Y direction inside the conveying pipe 12 is restricted by the upper or lower surface of the large-diameter part 16c abutting against the rib 35 or the partition wall 34. These also restrict the inclination of the axis of the conveying auxiliary body 16. Further, the position of the conveying auxiliary body 16 in the X direction inside the conveying pipe 12 is restricted by the outer periphery of the head 16a contacting the side wall part 32 or the outer periphery of the large-diameter part 16c contacting the inside of the expansion part 33.

[0035] Thus, the conveyance assist member 16 has a shape corresponding to the inner edge shape of the conveyance tube 12 (substantially the same shape with a certain clearance), closing substantially the entire cross-section of the conveyance tube 12, so that it can efficiently receive the action of the air flow and move. Further, the conveyance assist member 16 serves to prevent the air flow from upstream from reaching the downstream side of the conveyance assist member 16 and suppress the disturbance of the air flow on the downstream side.

[0036] When the banknote 6 is subjected to the action of the air flow in the conveyance tube 12, it tends to stick to the side wall portion 32. That is, it is almost impossible for the distance between one paper surface of the banknote 6 and the side wall portion 32 facing it and the distance between the other paper surface and the side wall portion 32 facing it to be equal. When one of the distances becomes narrower than the other, the flow velocity of the air flow becomes faster on the side with the narrower distance than on the side with the wider distance. Therefore, the air pressure on the side with the narrower distance becomes lower than the air pressure on the side with the wider distance, and due to this pressure difference, the banknote 6 is adsorbed and pressed against the side wall portion 32 on the side with the narrower distance. Then, the distance on the side with the narrower distance becomes even narrower, and a phenomenon occurs in which the banknote 6 sticks and adheres to the side wall portion 32.

[0037] When the banknote 6 strongly adheres to the side wall portion 32, it becomes difficult to push and convey the banknote 6 with the conveyance assist member 16. However, as described above, the conveyance assist member 16 serves to block (reduce) the flow of air to its downstream side. Therefore, the force with which the banknote 6 adheres and adsorbs becomes smaller, and smooth conveyance is realized.

[0038] The two large-diameter portions 16c of the conveyance assist member 16 engage with the respective two expansion portions 33 partitioned by the partition wall 34 of the conveyance tube 12. In this example, since the expansion portions 33 are partitioned into two by the partition wall 34 and these expansion portions 33 are provided closer to the center in the Y direction of the conveyance tube 12, the conveyance assist member 16 can be maintained in a stable posture and moved. Further, since the posture of the conveyance assist member 16 is stabilized, the large-diameter portion 16c of the conveyance assist member 16 can appropriately contact the rear end of the banknote 6 to provide a stable conveyance force. Also, it becomes difficult for the banknote 6 to be caught between the conveyance tube 12 and the conveyance assist member 16.

[0039] In addition, by providing the large-diameter portion 16c, the area of the portion that is affected by the air flow is increased, and the force for moving can be efficiently received. Further, since the large-diameter portion 16c is provided to efficiently receive the action of the air flow, the diameter of the head portion 16a can be reduced accordingly. By reducing the diameter of the head portion, the distance (width (Dx)) between the pair of opposing side wall portions 32 in the transport pipe 12 can be narrowed, and the falling of the banknote 6 can be prevented.

[0040] Furthermore, due to the presence of the plurality of ribs 35 provided on the side wall portion 32, the banknote 6 is prevented from sticking tightly to the side wall portion 32. That is, the contact area between the banknote 6 and the side wall portion 32 is reduced, the friction is reduced, and the generation of static electricity and the like can be suppressed. Also, even when the banknote 6 adheres to the side wall portion 32, since the banknote 6 is supported by the tip portion of the rib 35, a gap is secured between the side wall portion 32 and the banknote 6 around the rib 35, and the adhesion force is kept small. In addition, since the banknote 6 is supported by the separation wall 34, the banknote 6 is prevented from falling into the depression of the expansion portion 33.

[0041] Also, the tops of the plurality of ribs 35 and the separation wall 34 that protrude inward from the side wall portion 32 serve to make the passage width W of the banknote 6 in the width direction (X direction) of the transport pipe 12 narrower than the reference plane portion distance Dx. As a result, it becomes difficult for the banknote 6 to fall sideways in the transport pipe 12, and the posture of the banknote 6 is held along the Y direction. In particular, by providing a plurality of ribs 35, the falling of the banknote 6 is appropriately prevented, and the adhesion of the banknote 6 to the side wall portion 32 is also effectively prevented. Note that Dx can be increased by the amount of the ribs 35 provided, and thereby the cross-sectional area of the transport pipe 12 is increased and the transport assisting body 16 is more easily affected by the air flow.

[0042] In the case of the transport assisting body 16 according to the present embodiment, since the diameter of the large-diameter portion 16c is the largest, as shown in FIG. 3, this large-diameter portion 16c comes into contact with the rear end of the banknote 6 and pushes it.

[0043] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the turning portion 12b, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the turning portion 12b. The turning portion 12b has a shape that connects an arc portion 12bb extending the conveying pipe 12 so as to draw a 90-degree arc with the Y direction as the radial direction, a straight portion 12bc, and a 90-degree arc-shaped arc portion 12bb, and changes the path of the conveying auxiliary body 16 by 180 degrees. Also in the turning portion 12b, ribs 35 and an extension portion 33 are formed, but a separation wall 34 is not provided so that the conveying auxiliary body 16 does not get caught when moving in an arc along the arc portion 12bb, and in a portion overlapping the locus when the conveying auxiliary body 16 passes through the turning portion 12b, the ribs 35 and the extension portion 33 are made to escape (with a larger clearance than the straight portion). Thereby, the turning radius at the arc portion 12bb of the turning portion 12b can be reduced. The length of the straight portion 12bc may be appropriately determined according to the distance required between the forward path 12a and the return path 12c depending on the size of the separation recovery and delivery device 40, the take-in device 13, and the like. In addition, two ribs 12ba are provided in the extension portion 33 of the turning portion 12b corresponding to the large-diameter portion 16c of the conveying auxiliary body 16 to position-regulate the conveying auxiliary body 16 closer to the center in the X direction.

[0044] Next, the separation recovery and delivery device 40 will be described.

[0045] FIG. 10 is a front view showing the separation recovery and delivery device 40 with the door 46 of the storage box 41 opened, and FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the separation recovery and delivery device 40 with the door 46 of the storage box 41 opened. FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the main body unit 42 of the separation recovery and delivery device 40 with the storage box 41 removed, FIG. 13 is a right side view of the main body unit 42 of the separation recovery and delivery device 40, FIG. 14 is a front view of the main body unit 42 of the separation recovery and delivery device 40, FIG. 15 is a left side view of the main body unit 42 of the separation recovery and delivery device 40, and FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a partial simplification of the A-A cross-section in FIG. 14 of the main body unit 42.

[0046] As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the main unit 42 of the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 is stored in the storage box 41. Also, at the upper inner part of the storage box 41, a control unit 43 for controlling the operation of the entire paper sheet conveying device 10 including the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 is attached. The control unit 43 is mainly composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 12, the main unit 42 of the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 is fixed to the wife plate 18 of the gaming machine island 2 with screws separately from the storage box 41. The storage box 41 has an open back and is attached to the wife plate 18 with screws separately from the main unit 42 so as to cover the main unit 42. Thereby, depending on the installation location, the relative position between the main unit 42 and the storage box 41 can be arbitrarily adjusted. Details of this point will be described later.

[0048] As shown in FIGS. 13 to 16, the main unit 42 of the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 is provided at the starting end of the forward path 12a of the conveyance pipe 12 and includes a delivery unit 70 that sends out the conveyance auxiliary body 16 into the conveyance pipe 12, and is provided at the terminal end of the return path 12c of the conveyance pipe 12. A separation unit 50 that allows the banknote 6 conveyed by the conveyance auxiliary body 16 to pass through, receives the conveyance auxiliary body 16 that has pushed it and separates them, a storage unit 90 that serves as a safe for storing a large number of banknotes, and a collection unit 110 that receives the banknote 6 that has passed through the separation unit 50 downstream of the separation unit 50 into the collection passage 111 and stops it, and moves the stopped banknote 6 into the storage unit 90 for storage. It also includes an air flow generator 130 that sends an air flow into the delivery unit 70, and a connection duct 140 that sucks the air flow discharged from the terminal end of the conveyance pipe 12 through the separation unit 50 and the collection passage 111 of the collection unit 110, and returns it to the air supply port of the air flow generator 130 for circulation. Note that the air flow generated by the air flow generator 130 is sent into the starting end of the conveyance pipe 12 through the delivery unit 70.

[0049] As shown in FIGS. 15 and 18, etc., the main body unit 42 has each part such as the sending unit 70 and the separating unit 50 attached to the support frame 45 and integrated therewith.

[0050] FIG. 17 shows the main body unit 42 of the separation, collection and sending device 40 with the door 91 of the storage unit 90 for storing the banknotes 6 open.

[0051] In the separation, collection and sending device 40, the separating unit 50 is disposed directly above the sending unit 70, and the conveying auxiliary body 16 supplemented by the separating unit 50 is dropped into the sending unit 70 through the dropping passage 71 (see FIG. 16, cross-sectional view), and the dropped conveying auxiliary body 16 is used for the next sending, so that the conveying auxiliary body 16 is recycled.

[0052] The starting end of the forward path 12a of the conveying pipe 12 is connected to the conveying pipe connection port 72 of the sending unit 70, and the terminal end of the return path 12c of the conveying pipe 12 is connected to the conveying pipe connection port 51 of the separating unit 50 (see FIG. 16).

[0053] Next, the configuration of the separating unit 50 will be described.

[0054] FIG. 18 is a perspective view showing the separating unit 50 with the opening and closing rib 52 (to be described later) closed and the sending unit 70 below it, and FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing the separating unit 50 with the opening and closing rib 52 open and the sending unit 70 below it. FIG. 20 is a front view showing the separating unit 50 with the opening and closing rib 52 closed and the sending unit 70 below it, and FIG. 21 is a front view showing the separating unit 50 with the opening and closing rib 52 closed and capturing the conveying auxiliary body 16 and the sending unit 70 below it. FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view (section B-B in FIG. 20) of the separating unit 50 and the sending unit 70. FIG. 23 is an exploded perspective view of the separating unit 50.

[0055] As shown in the exploded perspective view of FIG. 23, the separating unit 50 includes a pair of left and right passage walls 56, a pair of left and right opening and closing ribs 52, and a pair of left and right contact portions 64.

[0056] The pair of left and right passage walls 56 has a bilaterally symmetric shape, and includes flat side walls 57 in a vertical posture, ceiling walls 58 horizontally extending from the upper ends of the side walls 57, and bottom walls 59 horizontally extending in the same direction as the ceiling walls 58 from the lower ends of the side walls 57. By combining the left and right sides so that the ceiling walls 58 and the bottom walls 59 abut against each other, a passage (separation part passage 56a) having a vertically long rectangular outer shape corresponding to the conveyance pipe 12 is formed. On the side walls 57 of an approximately half region (upper region) on the upstream side of the separation part passage 56a, five ribs 61 (61a to 61e) horizontally protruding inward of the passage and extending in the longitudinal direction of the passage are arranged at intervals in the vertical direction.

[0057] The uppermost and lowermost ribs 61a and 61e perform functions corresponding to the side wall portions 32 (see FIG. 7) of the conveyance pipe 12, and the protruding height in the horizontal direction is such that when the left and right passage walls 56 are combined to form the separation part passage 56a, a space corresponding to Dx in FIG. 7 is formed between the opposing ribs. The three ribs 61b to 61d excluding the upper and lower ones are ribs corresponding to the ribs 34 (ribs 35 and separation wall 34, see FIG. 7) of the conveyance pipe 12. These are provided at vertical positions corresponding to the neck portion 16b and the constricted portion 16d of the conveyance auxiliary body 16. The protruding height in the horizontal direction is such that when the left and right passage walls 56 are combined to form the separation part passage 56a, a space corresponding to the passage width W in FIG. 7 is formed between the opposing ribs.

[0058] In the downstream region (lower region) of the pair of left and right passage walls 56, the ribs 61 in the upper region are absent, and instead, slits 62 (62a to 62e) that are in the same vertical positions as the respective ribs 61a to 61e and are long in the passage longitudinal direction are provided. Also, in the lower region, the bottom wall 59 in the upper region is absent, and the bottom is open when the pair of left and right passage walls 56 are combined to form the separation part passage 56a.

[0059] The opening / closing rib 52 includes a flat side wall 53 in a vertical posture, five ribs 54 (54a to 54e) erected so as to project horizontally from the side wall 53 to the inside of the passage, and a bottom plate 55. The arrangement of the five ribs 54 (54a to 54e) corresponds to the slits 62 (62a to 62e). Each rib 54 of the opening / closing rib 52 is inserted into each slit 62 of the passage wall 56 from the outside of the passage wall 56. The bottom plate 55 is at a height where it is flatly connected to the bottom wall 59 of the passage wall 56 when each rib 54 of the opening / closing rib 52 is inserted into each slit 62 of the passage wall 56. When each rib 54 is inserted to the depth of the slit 62 (the position where the side wall 53 abuts against the outer surface of the side wall 57), the left and right bottom plates 55 abut and are connected.

[0060] The closed state of the opening / closing rib 52 is defined as the state in which the ribs 54 (54a to 54e) of the opening / closing rib 52 are inserted to the depth into the slits 62 (62a to 62e) of the passage wall 56 (see FIGS. 18, 20, and 21). The open state of the opening / closing rib 52 is defined as the state in which the ribs 54 (54a to 54e) of the opening / closing rib 52 are withdrawn from the slits 62 (62a to 62e) (until the bottom plate 55 is not in the separation part passage 56a), and the pair of left and right opening / closing ribs 52 are retracted outward (the distance between them is widened) (see FIG. 19). The separation part 50 includes an opening / closing drive part 68 that displaces the left and right opening / closing ribs 52 between the open state and the closed state (see FIGS. 18, 20, etc.). The separation part 50 has an opening / closing drive part 68 that displaces the opening / closing rib 52 between the open state and the closed state. The opening / closing drive part 68 is configured with a motor or a solenoid as a drive source.

[0061] The pair of left and right abutting parts 64 function to allow the banknote 6 coming from the terminal end of the transport pipe 12 to pass through by the air flow, and to abut against and receive the transport auxiliary body 16 that has pushed and moved the banknote 6 from the downstream side and stop it. The abutting part 64 includes a plurality of abutting claws 66 (66a to 66f) that abut against the large-diameter part 16c of the transport auxiliary body 16, and a support plate 65 that supports the plurality of abutting claws 66 vertically aligned at a predetermined interval. The left and right abutting parts 64 have a symmetric shape, and the left and right abutting parts 64 are arranged with a predetermined gap therebetween through which the banknote can pass.

[0062] The contact claw 66 of the right contact part 64 when viewed from the downstream side of the left and right pair has an inner shape of a concave arc that contacts the outer periphery of the right half of the downstream side of the large-diameter part 16c of the conveyance auxiliary body 16 from the downstream side. The contact claw 66 of the left contact part 64 when viewed from the downstream side of the left and right pair has an inner shape of a concave arc that contacts the outer periphery of the left half of the downstream side of the large-diameter part 16c of the conveyance auxiliary body 16 from the downstream side.

[0063] Each contact claw 66 is inserted between the ribs 54 on the side of the opening and closing rib 52. Specifically, the uppermost contact claw 66a is inserted between the ceiling wall 58 of the passage wall 56 and the rib 54a adjacent to it below, and the contact claw 66b is inserted between the rib 54a and the second rib 54b from the top. The contact claw 66c is inserted between the rib 54b and the third rib 54c from the top, and the contact claw 66d is inserted between the rib 54c and the fourth rib 54d from the top. The contact claw 66e is inserted between the rib 54d and the fifth rib 54e from the top, and the contact claw 66f is inserted between the rib 54e and the bottom plate 55 of the opening and closing rib 52. Each contact claw 66 is inserted until the support plate 65 of the contact part 64 contacts the end face of the passage wall 56.

[0064] FIG. 24 is a perspective view for showing the state of the inlet of the collection passage 111 as seen from the separation part 50. As shown in FIG. 24, the storage part 90 and the collection part 110 form an integrated safe unit 150. The contact part 64 of the separation part 50 is attached to the inlet of the collection passage 111 of the collection part 110. When the separation part 50 and the safe unit 150 are attached to the support frame 45 and assembled as the main body unit 42, each contact claw 66 of the contact part 64 is inserted into the aforementioned position and fits with each rib 54 of the separation part 50.

[0065] FIGS. 25 to 27 show a partial cross-section of the separation part 50 and the collection passage 111 of the collection part 110 arranged downstream thereof. FIG. 25 shows the open state of the opening and closing rib 52, FIG. 26 shows the closed state of the opening and closing rib 52, and FIG. 27 is a view in which the conveyance auxiliary body 16 supplemented to the separation part 50 and the banknote 6 stopped in the collection passage 111 are added to FIG. 26.

[0066] From the rib in the conveyance pipe 12 connected to the conveyance pipe connection port 51 of the separation unit 50, the ribs from the rib 61 in the upstream area of the separation unit 50, each rib 54 of the opening / closing rib 52 in the closed state, and each rib up to the contact claw 66 of the contact part 64 are connected in a stepwise manner from upstream to downstream (the top of the rib on the downstream side is at a lower position (outside the passage) than the rib on the upstream side) (see Fig. 26).

[0067] Each rib 54 of the opening / closing rib 52 has a slightly higher protruding height toward the inside of the passage near the downstream end thereof. Specifically, it is made slightly higher along the outer periphery of the head 16a (or the neck 16b or the constricted part 16d) of the supplemented conveyance auxiliary body 16 (see Fig. 27). Thereby, while properly maintaining the posture of the supplemented conveyance auxiliary body 16, the interval between the left and right ribs 54 in the closed state becomes narrower as it approaches the downstream end, and the banknote 6 that has arrived at the separation unit 50 is guided between the left and right contact parts 64, and the banknote 6 can smoothly advance into the collection passage 111 (see Figs. 26 and 27).

[0068] As shown in Fig. 27, the separation unit 50 receives and supplements the conveyance auxiliary body 16 with the contact claw 66 of the contact part 64 with the opening / closing rib 52 closed. Since the joint between the rib 54 of the opening / closing rib 52 and the rib 61 in the upstream area of the separation unit passage 56a has a stepwise difference in the direction from the rib 61 to the rib 54, it has a reverse stepwise difference when viewed in the direction in which the supplemented conveyance auxiliary body 16 returns to the upstream area side of the separation unit passage 56a. Therefore, the conveyance auxiliary body 16 supplemented to the contact part 64 can be maintained in a stable posture at the supplemented position.

[0069] Below the supplemented conveyance auxiliary body 16, as shown in Figs. 19, 22, 25, etc., the dropping passage 71 is located. When the opening / closing rib 52 is opened, the bottom of the downstream area of the separation unit passage 56a is opened, and the conveyance auxiliary body 16 drops into the dropping passage 71.

[0070] In this way, normally the opening / closing rib 52 is in the closed state, and when the supplemented conveyance auxiliary body 16 is dropped, the opening / closing rib 52 is displaced to the open state. Therefore, when the banknote 6 passes through the separation part 50, the opening / closing rib 52 is in the closed state. Thus, when the banknote 6 passes through, the entire path from the terminal of the conveyance pipe 12 through the separation part passage 56a of the separation part 50 to the collection passage 111 of the collection part 110 becomes a state where the ribs are connected in the same way as inside the conveyance pipe 12, and the posture of the banknote 6 can be maintained by the ribs to avoid jamming of the banknote 6.

[0071] Even if, for example, the rib 54 of the opening / closing rib 52 is not provided and only the bottom plate 55 is configured to open and close, it is possible to receive and supplement the upstream-coming conveyance auxiliary body 16 at the contact part 64 and open the bottom plate 55 in a timely manner to drop the conveyance auxiliary body 16 through the drop passage 71 to the delivery part 70. However, even when the bottom plate 55 is closed, there are no ribs in the downstream area of the separation part passage 56a, so the posture of the banknote 6 when passing through here becomes unstable, and jamming of the banknote 6 is likely to occur. Also, it becomes difficult to maintain the supplemented conveyance auxiliary body 16 in an appropriate posture. When the bottom plate 55 is opened, the conveyance auxiliary body 16 may not properly enter the drop passage 71 and may not drop, or the dropping posture may collapse, which will cause an obstacle to moving the conveyance auxiliary body 16 to the delivery part 70.

[0072] In the separation part 50 according to the present embodiment, when the opening / closing rib 52 is closed, the entire path from the terminal of the conveyance pipe 12 to the collection passage 111 of the collection part 110 is in a state where there are ribs equivalent to those inside the conveyance pipe 12. Therefore, the posture of the banknote 6 can be maintained by the ribs to avoid jamming of the banknote 6. Also, when the opening / closing rib 52 is closed, the conveyance auxiliary body 16 can be held in an appropriate posture. Thus, when the opening / closing rib 52 is opened, the conveyance auxiliary body 16 can be appropriately dropped and moved to the delivery part 70.

[0073] The separating unit 50 has a sensor 68a for detecting whether or not the conveying auxiliary member 16 exists at the position where it is caught by the catching portion 64, at a position on the upper surface of the separating unit passage 56a directly above the dropping passage 71 (see FIGS. 18 and 19). Further, a sensor 68b for detecting the passage of the banknote 6 is provided on the side surface of the upstream region of the separating unit passage 56a (see FIG. 13). When the sensor 68b detects the banknote 6 and then changes to non-detection after the elapse of a predetermined time required for passage, the control unit 43 determines that the banknote 6 has passed normally, and when the detection state continues for a certain period of time or more, determines that the banknote 6 is jammed at the location of the sensor 68b. The separating unit 50 has an opening / closing sensor 68c for detecting the opening and closing of the opening / closing rib 52 (see FIG. 13).

[0074] Next, the delivery unit 70 will be described with reference to FIGS. 18 to 22 and FIGS. 28 to 35. The delivery unit 70 has a delivery passage 73 having a vertically long rectangular cross-section and being cylindrical. The downstream end of the delivery passage 73 is a conveyance pipe connection port 72 to which the start end of the conveyance pipe 12 is connected. The upstream end of the delivery passage 73 is an air flow intake port 73a from the air flow generating device 130, to which a blower duct from the air flow generating device 130 is connected. A dropping passage 71 is provided on the upper surface near the upstream end of the delivery passage 73. The dropping passage 71 communicates with the inside of the delivery passage 73. The position directly below the dropping passage 71 is a standby position where the conveying auxiliary member 16 that has dropped through the dropping passage 71 waits for the next delivery.

[0075] The delivery unit 70 includes a backflow prevention valve 75 as a lid member for opening and closing the opening at the lower end of the dropping passage 71, a pair of left and right guide rollers 76 for correcting the posture of the conveying auxiliary member 16, posture guide members 77(a to c) for stably holding the posture of the conveying auxiliary member 16 in the standby position, and ribs 78(a to c).

[0076] FIGS. 28 and 29 are perspective views showing one side wall of the delivery passage 73 and the backflow prevention valve 75. FIG. 28 shows the state where the backflow prevention valve 75 is in the hanging position, and FIG. 29 shows the state where the backflow prevention valve 75 is in the closed position.

[0077] FIG. 30 shows a state where the conveyance assist member 16 is falling into the delivery unit 70 through the drop passage 71 from the separation unit 50, and FIG. 32 shows a state where the conveyance assist member 16 is at the standby position of the delivery unit 70. FIGS. 33 to 35 show, in chronological order, how the conveyance assist member 16 is sent out from the standby position into the start end of the conveyance pipe 12.

[0078] The backflow prevention valve 75 is a plate-like member whose upper end is pivotally supported by a shaft 75c (see FIGS. 28 and 29) in the passage width direction of the delivery passage 73 at a position adjacent to the upstream side (the upstream side in the flow direction of the air flow during delivery) of the opening at the lower end of the drop passage 71, and when hanging down, it is in a position (hanging position) that closes the air intake port from the air flow generator 130. When the air flow generator 130 generates an air flow, it rotates downward by the action of the air flow to close the opening at the lower end of the drop passage 71. The rotation range of the backflow prevention valve 75 is from the hanging position (see FIG. 28) in contact with the intake port to the closed position (see FIG. 29) that closes the opening at the lower end of the drop passage 71.

[0079] A weight may be attached to the backflow prevention valve 75 so that when the air flow generator 130 stops, it quickly returns to the hanging position to prevent the fall of the conveyance assist member 16. It is preferable to attach the weight to the tip of the backflow prevention valve 75.

[0080] The backflow prevention valve 75 in the hanging position functions as one of the side walls (the upstream side wall) that regulates the position of the conveyance assist member 16 so that the conveyance assist member 16 that has fallen through the drop passage 71 is stably held in an appropriate posture at the standby position (see FIGS. 30 and 32). In this function, the aforementioned weight serves to stabilize the backflow prevention valve 75 at the hanging position (the position that becomes the position regulating wall) during the stop of the air flow.

[0081] As shown in FIGS. 28 and 29, the backflow prevention valve 75 has a lid portion 75a that closes the opening at the lower end of the dropping passage 71 and an extension portion 75b extending from the lid portion 75a. In the present embodiment, when the extension portion 75b of the backflow prevention valve 75 is in a hanging position where the backflow prevention valve 75 hangs in front of the air flow intake port, the tip of the extension portion 75b reaches around the center of the large-diameter portion 16c below the transport assist body 16 waiting in the standby position (see FIG. 32).

[0082] The extension portion 75b is sized and shaped such that when the backflow prevention valve 75 rotates from the hanging position to the closed position where it closes the opening at the lower end of the dropping passage 71 under the action of the air flow, the transport assist body 16 in the standby position is pushed in the feeding direction by the tip of the extension portion 75b. FIG. 33 shows how the transport assist body 16 is pushed by the tip of the backflow prevention valve 75 at the start of feeding. The position where the tip of the extension portion 75b first contacts the transport assist body 16 when pushing the transport assist body 16 is preferably at least below the axial center of the transport assist body 16.

[0083] The guide roller 76 is a circular rotating body pivotally supported on an axis perpendicular to the surface including the feeding direction and the dropping direction of the transport assist body 16. It is pivotally supported at a position on the downstream side in the feeding direction of the outlet of the dropping passage and laterally contacts the transport assist body 16 dropping from the outlet, and contacts the transport assist body 16 being fed into the transport pipe from above, and regulates the posture of the transport assist body 16 during dropping and feeding.

[0084] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 28, the guide roller 76 is a circular plate-shaped member with a thickness of several millimeters, and is rotatably supported by a rotating shaft 76a erected perpendicular to the side wall of the delivery passage 73. As shown in FIG. 31, the pair of left and right guide rollers 76 are positioned to contact the outer peripheral surface of the large-diameter portion 16c of the transport assist member 16 that falls through the drop passage 71 from the downstream side in the delivery direction, and as shown in FIG. 33, the lowest point of the guide roller 76 is pivotally supported at a position where it contacts the upper surface of the large-diameter portion 16c above the transport assist member 16 that is delivered from the standby position toward the transport pipe 12 from above. Thereby, the guide roller 76 functions to regulate the posture and the dropping position of the transport assist member 16 that drops through the drop passage 71, and to correct the posture of the transport assist member 16 when it is delivered from the standby position.

[0085] An attitude guide member 77 for stably holding the attitude of the transport assist member 16 in the standby position is attached to the side wall of the delivery passage 73 (see FIG. 29). The attitude guide member 77a contacts the outer periphery of the large-diameter portion 16c of the transport assist member 16 in the standby position to regulate the attitude. The attitude guide member 77b contacts the lower surface of the large-diameter portion 16c below the transport assist member 16 from below to regulate the attitude. The attitude guide member 77c contacts the outer periphery of the lower head portion 16a of the transport assist member 16 to regulate the attitude.

[0086] The rib 78 corresponds to the ribs 34 and 35 of the transport pipe 12 (see FIGS. 5 and 7). As shown in FIG. 32, the lowermost rib 78c extends from near the transport assist member 16 in the standby position (the position connected to the attitude guide member 77b) to the downstream end of the delivery passage 73. At the starting end of the rib 78c, the upper surface slopes downward toward the tip, and at the joint with the attitude guide member 77b, a stepped difference is formed such that the upper surface of the starting end of the rib 78c is lower than the upper surface of the attitude guide member 77b.

[0087] The starting end of the rib 78b is set around directly below the rotating shaft of the guide roller 76. The starting end of the rib 78a is set slightly downstream of the rib 78b and at a position immediately before contacting the peripheral surface of the guide roller 76 from the upstream side.

[0088] A sensor 79 for detecting whether or not the conveyance assisting body 16 exists at the standby position is provided on the wall surface of the delivery passage 73 (see FIG. 18).

[0089] The sheet conveyance device 10 has an initial state shown in FIG. 21 in which the separating portion 50 with the opening / closing rib 52 closed catches the conveyance assisting body 16. When collecting the banknote 6 discharged into the conveyance pipe 12 from the taking-in device 13, it operates as follows.

[0090] In the initial state, the air flow generating device 130 is stopped, and the conveyance assisting body 16 is waiting in a state of being caught by the separating portion 50. First, when the taking-in device 13 detects the banknote 6 discharged from the back of the game medium lending machine 3, it takes in the banknote 6 and inserts it into the conveyance pipe 12. The control unit 43 periodically monitors the state of each taking-in device 13 by polling. When it recognizes that the banknote 6 has been taken in, it changes the opening / closing rib 52 of the separating portion 50 from the closed state to the open state, and drops the conveyance assisting body 16 to the delivery portion 70 through the dropping passage 71.

[0091] As shown in FIGS. 30 and 31, during the dropping, the conveyance assisting body 16 that has come out from the lower end of the dropping passage 71 is positionally restricted from three directions by the left and right side walls of the delivery passage 73 (and the attitude guide members 77 provided on the side walls) and the backflow prevention valve 75 in the hanging position, and is also positionally restricted from the remaining one direction out of the four directions by the guide roller 76. Thus, it falls to the delivery portion 70 while maintaining an appropriate attitude (substantially vertical attitude without inclining more than a certain degree). Since the guide roller 76 is a rotating body, even if the conveyance assisting body 16 during dropping comes into contact with it, the guide roller 76 rotates together with the conveyance assisting body 16 and allows the conveyance assisting body 16 to escape downward, preventing the conveyance assisting body 16 from getting caught on the guide roller 76.

[0092] When the control unit 43 recognizes that the transport assist body 16 has normally moved to the delivery unit 70 based on the detection by the sensor 79, it closes the opening / closing rib 52 and then operates the air flow generator 130 to generate an air flow. Then, the backflow prevention valve 75 at the delivery unit 70 starts to rotate toward the closed position in response to the air flow sent in from the intake port. The transport assist body 16 in the standby position starts to move toward the start end of the transport pipe 12 due to the action of the air flow flowing in from the intake port and being pushed by the tip of the extension 75b of the backflow prevention valve 75 that has started to rotate (see Fig. 33).

[0093] At this time, the posture of the transport assist body 16 is regulated by the rib 78c provided on the side wall of the delivery passage 73 and the guide roller 76, and it starts to move without tilting more than a certain amount forward and backward. For example, when the transport assist body 16 tries to lift while moving downstream, the upper surface of the large-diameter portion 16c on the upper side of the transport assist body 16 comes into contact with the guide roller 76 and its position is regulated. The guide roller 76 rotates when the transport assist body 16 comes into contact and releases the transport assist body 16 forward, so it can smoothly send out the transport assist body 16 without getting caught and correct the posture at the same time.

[0094] When the transport assist body 16 moves to the position shown in Fig. 34, thereafter, it is guided by the ribs 78a to 78c and enters the transport pipe 12 in an appropriate posture. The backflow prevention valve 75 assumes a closed position that blocks the opening at the lower end of the drop passage 71 under the action of the air flow (Fig. 35), and remains in the closed position while the air flow continues, preventing the air flow from flowing back to the separation unit 50 through the drop passage 71.

[0095] The transport auxiliary body 16 sent out from the sending section 70 transports the banknotes 6 on the way while pushing them from behind, and reaches the separation section 50. Since the opening and closing rib 52 of the separation section 50 is in a closed state, the transported banknotes 6 are guided by the rib 61 in the separation section passage 56a and the rib 54 and the abutment claw 66 of the opening and closing rib 52, and pass through the separation section passage 56a in a proper posture, and further pass between the left and right abutment parts 64, enter the recovery passage 111 of the recovery section 110, and stop when it hits the end of the recovery passage 111 (see FIG. 27). When the sensor 68a detects that the transport auxiliary body 16 has stopped by abutting against the abutment claw 66 of the abutment part 64 of the separation section 50, the control section 43 stops the air flow generating device 130. Thereafter, the banknotes 6 in the recovery passage 111 are stored in the storage section 90, and the initial state is restored.

[0096] By performing the above operation every time a banknote 6 is collected, one transport auxiliary body 16 is used cyclically. Note that, on the condition that no banknotes 6 have been taken into the take-in device 13 (no banknotes 6 have been taken into the transport tube 12), the transport auxiliary body 16 waiting in the separation section 50 may be moved to the sending section 70, and then the air flow generating device 130 may be operated to execute an air flow generating device operation confirmation mode for confirming that the transport auxiliary body 16 has returned to the separation section 50. The air flow generating device operation confirmation mode may be executed when the paper sheet transport device 10 is started up, or may be executed at regular time intervals (for example, every 30 minutes), or may be executed as a confirmation operation after an error such as a jam has been cleared.

[0097] Furthermore, the air flow generating device 130 may be operated while the transport auxiliary body 16 is waiting in the separation section 50, and it may be confirmed whether a signal indicating that the air flow generating device 130 has operated normally has been output. In this way, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the air flow generating device 130 does not operate and the transport auxiliary body 16 is unable to collect the banknotes even though the banknotes have been taken into the take-in device 13 and the transport auxiliary body 16 has dropped from the separation section 50.

[0098] In the separating unit 50, since the conveying auxiliary member 16 has a stepped difference in the direction in which it enters the separating unit passage 56a, there is a reverse stepped difference in the direction in which the supplemented conveying auxiliary member 16 tilts or moves toward the end side of the conveyance path, and the conveying auxiliary member 16 can be held in a stable posture at the supplemented position. On the other hand, in the sending unit 70 that sends the conveying auxiliary member 16 that has fallen from the falling passage 71 to the start end of the conveying pipe 12, there is a stepped difference in the sending direction so that the conveying auxiliary member 16 can be sent out smoothly without being caught. Also, guide rollers 76 and the like are provided. Therefore, the separating unit 50 is more suitable than the sending unit 70 for maintaining the conveying auxiliary member 16 in a long and stable posture.

[0099] In the paper sheet conveying device 10 according to the present embodiment, the conveying auxiliary member 16 is made to wait in the separating unit 50, and then when conveying the paper sheets next, after moving the conveying auxiliary member 16 waiting in the separating unit 50 to the sending unit 70, an air flow is generated, so that the conveying auxiliary member 16 can be held in a stable posture in the separating unit 50 until immediately before the next sending. Also, after dropping the conveying auxiliary member 16 from the separating unit 50 to the sending unit 70 through the dropping passage 71, an air flow is generated, so that dropping is not hindered.

[0100] Furthermore, it becomes possible to send only the air flow into the conveying pipe 12 while the conveying auxiliary member 16 is held in the separating unit 50, and this can be used for eliminating some kind of obstacle or the like. For example, if it is held in the separating unit 50, even if the posture of the conveying auxiliary member 16 is disturbed during holding, by generating the air flow for a short time before dropping, the conveying auxiliary member 16 can be correctly returned to the capturing position and then dropped.

[0101] Also, when the conveying auxiliary member 16 is first set in the separating unit 50, if the air flow is blown from the air flow generating device 130 for a short time (for example, about 10 seconds), the posture of the conveying auxiliary member 16 can be corrected to the normal posture.

[0102] Next, the storage unit 90 and the recovery unit 110 will be described.

[0103] As shown in FIGS. 24 and 36, the collection unit 110 and the storage unit 90 are integrated into a safe unit 150. FIG. 36 is a perspective view for showing the state of the entrance of the collection passage 111 as seen from the separation unit 50 side. The collection unit 110 includes a collection passage 111 that receives and stops the banknote 6 that has passed through the separation unit 50 (see FIG. 27). The collection passage 111 is a passage with a vertically long rectangular cross-section and is hollow. The collection passage 111 receives the banknote 6 in a horizontally long posture with the paper surface standing upright. The passage length is slightly longer than the long side of the banknote 6, and the terminal end is an exhaust port 112 for the air flow flowing in from the separation unit 50. At the exhaust port 112, there is provided a butting member 113 that abuts against the banknote 6 coming from the separation unit 50 and stops it inside the collection passage 111.

[0104] As shown in FIG. 16, one end of a connection duct 140 is connected to the exhaust port 112 at the terminal end of the collection passage 111, and the other end of the connection duct 140 is connected to the air supply port of the air flow generating device 130. In this example, the butting member 113 is provided on the connection duct 140 side connected to the exhaust port 112 (see FIG. 41). Specifically, the end of the connection duct 140 on the side connected to the terminal end of the collection passage 111 is a terminal plate 142 having an air flow suction port 141. The connection duct 140 is connected to the collection passage 111 by aligning the positions of the suction port 141 and the exhaust port 112 so that the terminal plate 142 contacts the terminal end of the collection passage 111. On the terminal plate 142, there is provided a butting member 113 so as to cross the suction port 141.

[0105] The butting member 113 provided on the terminal plate 142 is provided so as to cross the exhaust port 112 at the terminal end of the collection passage 111 in the width direction of the passage at a position around the center in the height direction of the collection passage 111 when the connection duct 140 is connected to the collection passage 111. Here, two butting members 113 are provided at a predetermined interval in the height direction of the collection passage 111.

[0106] As shown in FIGS. 27 and 41, on the surface (contact surface) of the abutting member 113 against which the banknote 6 abuts, a plurality of protrusions are provided at intervals in a direction crossing the paper surface of the paper sheet (in a direction perpendicular to or obliquely crossing the paper surface). Specifically, unevenness is provided so as to undulate with the passage width direction as the wavelength direction. When the banknote 6 that has entered the recovery passage 111 from the separation unit 50 abuts against the abutting member 113, the tip of the banknote 6 fits into one of the concave portions due to this unevenness (the protrusions are convex portions, and the spaces between the protrusions are concave portions), thereby preventing the tip of the banknote 6 from slipping in the passage width direction during the collision and playing a role in stabilizing the stop position of the banknote 6.

[0107] The height of the protrusion only needs to be such that the tip of the banknote can be caught, and is 0.5 mm to 1 mm, preferably 1 mm. The interval between the protrusions is 3 mm to 5 mm, preferably 4 mm, and the width of the protrusion is preferably as small as possible within the range where the strength can be ensured. Note that the height, interval, and width of the protrusions are not limited to these values. Also, the direction in which the plurality of protrusions cross the discharge port 112 at the end of the recovery passage 111 is not limited to crossing exactly horizontally, and may be oblique, zigzag, etc., as long as they are arranged at intervals in the passage width direction.

[0108] One side wall of the recovery passage 111 (the first side wall 115 forms the boundary with the storage unit 90 and is composed of an upper first side wall 115a and a lower first side wall 115b that are divided vertically, and an opening 115c for pushing the banknote 6 in the recovery passage 111 into the storage unit 90 is formed between them (see FIGS. 37, 40, and 44). FIG. 37 is a perspective view showing a storage assembly 152 in which the storage unit 90 and the first side wall 115 of the recovery passage 111 are integrated.

[0109] FIG. 38 is a perspective view showing the pressing assembly 151, and FIG. 39 is a perspective view of a part of the pressing assembly 151 disassembled. The other side wall (the second side wall 117) of the recovery passage 111 includes a movable wall 117a that is displaceable to extend into the storage portion 90 through the opening 115c, a fixed upper second side wall 117b having a rectangular cross-section and a rod shape above the movable wall 117a, and a fixed lower second side wall 117c having a rectangular cross-section and a rod shape below the movable wall 117a that constitutes the second side wall 117 (see FIGS. 38, 39, and 44).

[0110] FIG. 59 is a view showing the front and D-D cross-section of the movable wall 117a. The movable wall 117a is configured by erecting a plurality of ribs 118b on a base plate 118a parallel to the first side wall 115. The ribs 118b are erected vertically from the base plate 118a toward the inside of the recovery passage 111 and extend long in the passage length direction of the recovery passage 111 (across the entire length of the second side wall 117). The plurality of ribs 118b are provided in parallel at intervals in the passage height direction, forming grooves between them. The height of the rib 118b is zero from the base plate 118a at the start end on the inlet side of the recovery passage 111, gradually increases in a predetermined range (near the inlet of the recovery passage 111, for example, in a range of about 5 cm from the inlet) in the direction from the start end to the end, and then extends to the end at a constant height. The portion where the height gradually increases is defined as the height increasing region.

[0111] The height of the rib 118b (the height of the portion extending to the end at a constant height) is about 10 mm, the thickness is about 2 mm, and the width of the groove is about 10 mm. The height of the rib 118b is preferably 9 mm to 10 mm, the thickness of the rib 118b is preferably 1.5 mm to 2 mm, and the width of the groove is preferably 5 mm to 6 mm.

[0112] In the groove between the rib 118b near the entrance of the recovery passage 111 and the rib 118b, there is provided an inclined surface portion 119 that bends the traveling direction of the air flow flowing in from the separation unit 50 side so as to be toward the paper surface of the banknote in the passage. When the air flow flowing in from the separation unit 50 side hits the inclined surface portion 119, the flow path is bent from the direction of flowing downstream along the paper surface to the direction of flowing obliquely downstream toward the paper surface. The flow of the air flow and the banknote are additionally shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 59. Here, the inclined surface portion 119 is provided between the rib 118b in the height increasing region and the rib 118b, and is made not to protrude inside the passage from the top of the rib 118b. In the embodiment, the inclined surface portion 119 is provided in a range of about 1 / 4 of the end side of the height increasing region of the rib 118b, and is an inclined surface that starts from a height of zero and inclines at an angle such that it becomes the same height as the top of the rib 118b near the end of the height increasing region.

[0113] The number, position, range, and inclination angle of the inclined surface portion 119 provided are not limited to the above, and may be appropriate as long as the effect of bending the flow path of the air flow flowing into the recovery passage 111 so as to be toward the paper surface of the banknote in the recovery passage can be obtained. For example, the inclined surface portion 119 may be provided in an arbitrary range within the height increasing region. The start of the inclined surface portion 119 may be the start end of the recovery passage 111 in the same manner as the rib 118b, or may be downstream of it. Further, the end of the inclined surface portion 119 is not limited to the end of the height increasing region, and may end on the more start end side. Furthermore, the inclined surface portion 119 may be a curved inclined surface or a flat inclined surface. FIG. 60(a) illustrates an inclined surface portion 119 with a gentler inclination compared to FIG. 59.

[0114] The inclined surface portion 119 may be provided downstream of the height increasing region, or may be provided from the height increasing region to downstream thereof. The inclined surface portion 119 is not limited to being provided near the entrance of the recovery passage 111, and may be provided on the downstream side of the recovery passage 111 from this, or as shown in FIG. 60(b), another inclined surface portion 119b may be additionally provided on the downstream side of the inclined surface portion 119 provided near the entrance of the recovery passage 111.

[0115] Also, as shown in FIG. 60(c), the rib 118b and the inclined surface portion 119 may be integrated, for example, the entire height-increasing region may be the inclined surface portion 119. The inclined surface portion 119 may be provided on the first side wall 115 side near the entrance of the recovery passage 111, or may be provided on the side walls on both sides.

[0116] The inclined surface portion 119 has the effect of guiding the banknote 6 to the end of the recovery passage 111. If the inclined surface portion 119 is not provided, the banknote 6 that has entered the recovery passage 111 from the separation portion 50 may not reach the end of the recovery passage 111. In this state, when the movable wall 117a is advanced to store the banknote 6 in the storage portion 90, an obstacle may occur such that the rear end of the banknote 6 does not properly enter the opening 115c and is folded.

[0117] That is, when the transport auxiliary body 16 is supplemented at the separation portion 50, the banknote 6 is no longer pushed by the transport auxiliary body 16, so it has to directly receive the downstream force from the air flow. However, since the air flow flows parallel to the paper surface of the banknote 6, it is difficult to receive the force from the air flow.

[0118] In particular, when the transport auxiliary body 16 is supplemented at the separation portion 50, the transport auxiliary body 16 obstructs the flow of the air flow, so the air flow becomes weaker in the recovery passage 111 downstream of the separation portion 50 and the above-mentioned obstacle is likely to occur.

[0119] When the inclined surface portion 119 is provided, the path of the air flow flowing in from the separation portion 50 side is bent from the direction flowing parallel to the paper surface of the banknote to the direction toward the paper surface (diagonal downstream direction), so that the air flow in the diagonal downstream direction hits the paper surface of the banknote 6 and can move the banknote 6 downstream. This movement is a movement of several centimeters until the tip of the banknote 6 reaches the abutting member 113 at the end of the recovery passage 111, and it is sufficient to be able to advance the banknote 6 little by little. The inclined surface portion 119 is provided at a position where the banknote 6 can be advanced downstream until the tip of the banknote reaches the abutting member 113. Specifically, it is preferably provided such that the rear end of the banknote whose tip has reached the abutting member 113 is upstream of the end of the inclined surface portion 119 (the end on the side of the abutting member 113).

[0120] It is possible to directly confirm by providing a sensor that the tip of the banknote 6 has reached the abutting member 113 at the end of the collection passage 111. However, after waiting for a predetermined time to elapse after the sensor detects that the conveyance assist member 16 has reached the separation unit 50, it may be estimated that the tip of the banknote 6 has reached the abutting member 113 at the end of the collection passage 111. In the embodiment, after the sensor 68c detects that the conveyance assist member 16 has reached the separation unit 50, control is performed so that the operation of storing the banknote from the collection passage 111 into the storage unit 90 is started after 2 to 3 seconds have elapsed.

[0121] Also, as shown in FIG. 59, if a slope portion 119 having a slope greater than the slope of the rib 118b is provided in the groove between the ribs 118b in the height increasing region, even if the banknote 6 adheres to the top of the rib 118b, an air flow flows in the groove between the ribs 118b, and the air flow changes direction at the slope portion 119 and hits the paper surface of the banknote 6. Therefore, the slope portion having the above configuration can more appropriately secure the conveyance force by the air flow compared to the slope portion (configuration without a groove) having the configuration shown in FIG. 60(c) in which the rib 118b and the slope portion 119 are integrated.

[0122] Also, the grooves formed between the plurality of ribs 118b also ensure a passage for the air flow on the movable wall 117a side from the paper surface of the banknote 6 in the collection passage 111 even in the downstream area from the height increasing region (ensuring a passage for air even if the banknote adheres to the rib 118b). Therefore, air flows on both sides of the paper surface of the banknote 6, and the banknote 6 can be smoothly guided to the end of the collection passage 111. Also, by providing the rib 118b, the contact area between the movable wall 117a and the banknote 6 is reduced, the resistance is decreased, and it becomes easier to move the banknote 6 to the end of the collection passage 111.

[0123] The rib 118b and the slope portion 119 may be provided on the wall surface facing the paper surface of the paper sheet in the collection passage 111, and are not limited to the movable wall 117a. For example, it may be formed on a fixed wall surface instead of a wall surface that moves like the movable wall 117a.

[0124] Furthermore, the collection unit 110 has a displacement mechanism unit 120 that displaces the movable wall 117a. The displacement mechanism unit 120 is composed of a motor and a link that converts its rotation into a linear reciprocating motion for advancing and retracting the movable wall 117a. The movable wall 117a displaces between the storage position shown in FIGS. 38 and 43 and the pushing position (see FIG. 44(c)) where it advances through the opening 115c into the storage unit 90 by advancing and retracting in the passage width direction of the collection passage 111.

[0125] The length of the movable wall 117a in the height direction of the collection passage 111 is slightly shorter than the length of the opening 115c in the height direction of the collection passage 111, and the central position of the movable wall 117a in the height direction of the collection passage and the central position of the opening 115c in the height direction of the collection passage coincide.

[0126] The pressing assembly 151 shown in FIG. 38 is an assembly that integrates the second side wall 117 of the collection passage 111 and the displacement mechanism unit 120 in the collection unit 110. FIG. 39 is a perspective view showing the separation of the movable wall 117a from the upper second side wall 117b and the lower second side wall 117c of the second side wall 117 with respect to FIG. 38. FIG. 40 shows the portion (guide member 157) attached to the storage unit 90 side in the collection passage 111. The guide member 157 is a member that forms the first side walls 115a, 115b and the upper and lower wall portions 126, 127 of the collection passage 111.

[0127] Among the second side walls 117, the upper second side wall 117b and the lower second side wall 117c having a rectangular cross-sectional rod shape extend beyond the abutting member 113 and into the suction port 141 provided on the end plate 142 of the connection duct 140 as shown in FIGS. 16, 27, and 41. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the tip of the banknote 6 from entering between the end of the collection passage 111 and the end plate 142 of the connection duct 140. FIG. 41 is a perspective view showing the connection duct 140 with the upper second side wall 117b and the lower second side wall 117c appended.

[0128] There will inevitably be a gap between the end of the recovery passage 111 and the end plate 142 on the connection duct 140 side, even if the manufacturing accuracy is improved. Therefore, if, as shown in Fig. 42, the abutting member 113 has no unevenness and the upper second side wall 117b and the lower second side wall 117c are terminated at the end of the recovery passage 111 or before it, when the banknote 6 collides with the abutting member 113, the tip of the banknote 6 may slide on the contact surface of the abutting member 113 without unevenness and enter the gap between the end of the recovery passage 111 and the end plate 142 of the connection duct 140 and be pinched.

[0129] In the separation, recovery and delivery device 40 according to the present embodiment, the unevenness of the abutting member 113 prevents the tip of the banknote 6 from sliding sideways on the contact surface, and the upper second side wall 117b and the lower second side wall 117c extend beyond the abutting member 113 into the suction port 141 of the connection duct 140. Therefore, the tip of the banknote 6 that abuts on the contact surface of the abutting member 113 is blocked by the upper second side wall 117b and the lower second side wall 117c and does not enter the gap between the end of the recovery passage 111 and the end plate 142 of the connection duct 140 and be pinched.

[0130] As shown in Fig. 27, the start end (the end on the separation part 50 side) of the second side wall 117 (117a - 117c) of the recovery passage 111 is outside the passage width direction of the passage area of the banknote 6 formed between the pair of left and right abutting claws 66 of the separation part 50, and the connection with the adjacent abutting claw 66 on the upstream side has a stepped difference in the passage width direction. The second side wall 117 is inclined in a direction approaching the first side wall 115 within a predetermined range of the start end part. When the wall surface approaches around the center of the passage width (the center position in the passage width direction of the passage area between the pair of left and right abutting claws 66), it then becomes parallel to the passage length direction and extends to the end. That is, the second side wall 117 narrows the substantial passage width of the recovery passage 111 to approximately half on the first side wall 115 side to suppress the inclination of the vertical posture of the banknote 6.

[0131] The starting ends (the ends on the separation unit 50 side) of the upper first side wall 115a and the lower first side wall 115b that constitute the first side wall 115 are outside the passage width direction of the passage area of the banknote 6 formed between the pair of left and right contact claws 66, and the connection with the adjacent contact claw 66 on the upstream side has a stepped difference in the passage width direction. The first side wall 115 is inclined so as to approach the second side wall 117 side in a slight range of the starting end portion, and when approaching the position closer to the center until the wall surface becomes slightly outside the passage area, it then becomes parallel to the passage length direction and extends to the end. The wall surface position of the first side wall 115 in the passage width direction in the portion parallel to the passage length direction is the same as the tip of the rib 61 formed on the side wall 57 on the same side as the first side wall 115 of the separation unit passage 56a. The first side wall 115, similar to the second side wall 117, narrows the substantial passage width of the collection passage 111 to suppress the inclination of the vertical posture of the banknote 6.

[0132] As shown in FIGS. 17, 37, etc., The storage unit 90 has a hollow rectangular parallelepiped shape for storing the banknotes 6, and the front is a door 91 that opens and closes. The storage unit 90 and the collection passage 111 are adjacent and integrated via the first side wall 115 of the collection passage 111 (one side wall of the collection passage facing one paper surface of the stopped paper sheets). The side surface of the storage unit 90 on the collection passage 111 side is open, and the boundary between the storage unit 90 and the collection passage 111 is the first side wall 115 on the collection passage 111 side, and the storage unit 90 and the collection passage 111 communicate via the opening 115c of the first side wall 115.

[0133] FIG. 43 is a schematic view showing a cross section of the collection passage 111 and the storage unit 90 at a position corresponding to the C-C line in FIG. 13. Inside the storage unit 90, a pressing plate 92 for pressing the side surface of the stored banknote 6 toward the first side wall 115 of the collection passage 111 and a spring 94 for biasing the pressing plate 92 toward the first side wall 115 of the collection passage 111 are provided.

[0134] On the surface of the first side wall 115 (upper first side wall 115a and lower first side wall 115b) of the recovery passage 111 facing the storage part 90 side, a rubber plate 96 is attached. The pressing plate 92 has a base part 92a pressed by a spring 94, an upper pressing part 92b extending obliquely upward and forward (forward: toward the recovery passage 111 side) from the upper part of the base part 92a and having its tip portion in surface contact with the rubber plate 96 of the upper first side wall 115a, and a lower pressing part 92c extending obliquely downward and forward from the lower part of the base part 92a and having its tip portion in surface contact with the rubber plate 96 of the lower first side wall 115b. The other end of the spring 94 is attached to the side wall of the storage part 90. As shown in Fig. 37, U-shaped notches 92d are provided at both ends in the passage length direction of the recovery passage of the base part 92a of the pressing plate 92.

[0135] Figs. 44 and 45 are explanatory diagrams showing an outline of the operation when storing the banknote 6 stopped in the recovery passage 111 of the recovery part 110 into the storage part 90. Figs. 44 and 45, similar to Fig. 43, show an outline of the cross-section of the recovery passage 111 and the storage part 90 at a position corresponding to the C-C line in Fig. 13.

[0136] Fig. 44(a) shows a state where several banknotes 6 are stored in the storage part 90 and the next banknote 6 to be stored has arrived in the recovery passage 111. When storing the banknote 6 in the recovery passage 111 into the storage part 90, the movable wall 117a advances into the storage part 90, starts to retreat when it reaches the pushing position shown in Fig. 44(c), returns to the storage position shown in Fig. 45(a), and ends a series of operations.

[0137] As shown in Fig. 44(b), when the banknote 6 is pushed by the movable wall 117a and passes through the opening 115c of the first side wall 115, the upper and lower end portions come into contact with the upper first side wall 115a and the lower first side wall 115b and bend, and when it finishes passing through, the bend returns and it becomes flat (Fig. 44(c)). Then, when the movable wall 117a retreats from the pushing position toward the storage position, the pressing plate 92 pressed by the spring 94 moves toward the recovery passage 111 side integrally with the movable wall 117a while sandwiching the banknote 6 between it and the movable wall 117a.

[0138] As shown in Fig. 45(a), the movable wall 117a passes through the opening 115c and returns to the storage position, and the curved and flattened banknote 6 has its upper and lower ends abutting against the rubber plates 96 of the upper first side wall 115a and the lower first side wall 115b, and is clamped between the first side wall 115 (115a, 115b) and the pressing plate 92.

[0139] When the operator takes out the banknote 6 stored in this way from the storage unit 90, the operator opens the door 91 of the storage unit 90 and uses the notch 92d provided in the pressing plate 92 to pick up and take out the banknote 6 with a finger. If one or more banknotes 6 are stored, as shown in Fig. 44(a) and Fig. 45(a), the opening 115c of the first side wall 115 of the recovery passage 111 is blocked by the banknote 6 clamped between the pressing plate 92 and the rubber plate 96. Therefore, even if the pressing plate 92 is provided with the notch 92d, the airtightness at the boundary between the recovery passage 111 and the storage unit 90 is ensured. Thus, the suction force when the air flow generating device 130 sucks the air flow from the end of the recovery passage 111 can be maintained high, and the transport auxiliary body 16 and the banknote 6 can be transported at high speed and stably.

[0140] Note that after reaching the storage position shown in Fig. 45(a), the state where the movable wall 117a is advanced to the position shown in Fig. 45(b) again may be set as the end position of the storage operation. When the state shown in Fig. 45(a) is taken as the end of the storage operation, when the operator tries to open the door 91 of the storage unit 90 to take out the banknote 6, the finger (the finger on the side opposite to the notch 92d) hits the wall member at the boundary between the recovery passage 111 and the storage unit 90, making it difficult to take out. If the storage operation is ended at the position shown in Fig. 45(b), there is nothing to obstruct the finger for taking out the banknote 6, and the banknote 6 is easy to take out.

[0141] As described above, in a state where the air flow is discharged from the discharge port 112 at the end of the recovery passage 111, the banknote 6 that has entered the recovery passage 111 is made to abut against the abutting member 113 and stopped, and then the air flow is stopped, so that the recovery of the banknote 6 and the separation of the banknote 6 from the air flow are performed. Therefore, the banknote 6 can be separated from the air flow and recovered with a simple configuration.

[0142] Further, by pushing the paper surface of the banknote 6 stopped in the collection passage 111 in the passage width direction with the movable wall 117a, it is stored directly from the stop position into the storage unit 90. Therefore, compared with the case of transporting the banknote to the safe using belt conveyance or the like, the mechanism related to storage can be simplified, and factors such as failure and banknote jamming can be reduced.

[0143] As shown in FIG. 43, the height inside the passage of the collection passage 111 is made larger than the height of the banknote 6 in consideration of the clearance. Since the lower edge of the banknote 6 stopped in the collection passage 111 is offset downward in contact with the bottom surface of the collection passage 111 due to its own weight, there is a positional deviation between the center in the height direction of the collection passage 111 and the center in the height direction of the banknote 6 inside the passage.

[0144] However, in order to push the banknote 6 from the collection passage 111 into the storage unit 90 through the opening 115c of the first side wall 115, it is desirable that the center position in the height direction of the banknote 6 coincides with the center position in the height direction of the opening 115c of the first side wall 115. Therefore, the length of the upper first side wall 115a in the passage height direction is made longer than the length of the lower first side wall 115b in the passage height direction.

[0145] Also, the upper pressing portion 92b and the lower pressing portion 92c of the pressing plate 92 have sizes and shapes corresponding to the upper first side wall 115a and the lower first side wall 115b provided with the rubber plates 96 to which they are in contact, respectively.

[0146] Next, the flexibility of the installation of the separation collection and delivery device 40 will be described.

[0147] As shown in FIG. 46, the door 46 of the storage box 41 of the separation collection and delivery device 40 can be used as a right-opening or a left-opening by inverting the up and down with respect to the main body of the storage box 41. In either case, the window 46a is provided at a point target position with respect to the center in the up and down and the center in the left and right of the door so that the display portion of the control unit 43 can be confirmed. The unused window 46a is blocked by a light-blocking member.

[0148] Also, as shown in Fig. 47, two separation, collection, and delivery devices 40 may be arranged side by side, and two storage boxes 41 may be arranged adjacent to each other. Even in this case, the periphery of the door 46 is chamfered and is a slope inclined at 45 degrees so that the door 46 can be opened up to 90 degrees.

[0149] In addition, the main body unit 42 of the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 can be used in both a right specification (as shown in Figs. 48(a) and (b) where the storage unit 90 is arranged on the right side of the collection unit 110) and a left specification (see Fig. 48(c) where the storage unit 90 is arranged on the left side of the collection unit 110) by changing the orientation and assembly method of some components.

[0150] The separation, collection, and delivery device 40 has a storage box 41 and a main body unit 42 that are separate bodies, and each can be individually attached to the side plate 18. Since the main body unit 42 can also be changed between the right specification and the left specification, various attachment methods are possible as shown in Fig. 48.

[0151] Fig. 48(a) shows a state where the right-specification main body unit 42 is attached closer to the left side inside the storage box 41 with the door 46 opened to the right. Fig. 48(b) shows a state where the right-specification main body unit 42 is attached closer to the right side inside the storage box 41 with the door 46 opened to the left. Fig. 48(c) shows a state where the left-specification main body unit 42 is attached closer to the right side inside the storage box 41 with the door 46 opened to the left.

[0152] For example, when installing the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 shown in Fig. 48(c) adjacent to the left side of the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 shown in Fig. 48(a), the two transport pipes 12 connected to these two separation, collection, and delivery devices 40 can be installed as close as possible to the left and right, and in a gaming machine island 2 configured to have two paper currency transport paths side by side, it becomes possible to reduce the island width.

[0153] The recombination of the right specification and the left specification is performed as follows.

[0154] As shown in FIG. 49, the connection duct 140 is composed of a combination of a lower duct 144, an upper duct 145, upper and lower connection plates 146, and a terminal plate 142. The lower duct 144 is a duct that extends downward with a rectangular first opening 144a facing upward at one end, then bends 90 degrees and reaches a second opening 144b on the other end side that is connected to the air supply port of the air flow generating device 130. The upper duct 145 has a shape in which one side surface of a duct with a rectangular cross-section and one end closed and the other end open is open, and the terminal plate 142 is fitted into the open side surface and combined.

[0155] The upper and lower connection plate 146 is a plate-like member that covers the first opening 144a of the lower duct 144, has a rectangular notch 146a at one corner corresponding to the opening at the lower end of the combined upper duct 145 with the terminal plate 142, and the combined terminal plate 142 and the lower end of the upper duct 145 are screwed together with the opening at the lower end and the notch 146a aligned.

[0156] The terminal plate 142 is a rectangular plate-like member that has a rectangular notch 142a serving as a suction port 141 communicating with the terminal of the recovery passage 111 at one corner, and is provided with a butting member 113 that protrudes into the notch 142a. The butting member 113 has irregularities (protrusions) formed on both the front and back surfaces.

[0157] For the connection duct 140 of the right specification, the upper and lower connection plate 146 is turned over so that the position of the notch 146a is reversed left and right and combined with the lower duct 144, and the terminal plate 142 is turned over so that the position of the notch 142a is reversed left and right and combined with the upper duct 145, and by connecting the upper duct 145 side and the lower duct 144 side, the connection duct 140 of the left specification is obtained.

[0158] FIG. 50 shows an overview of the process of reorganizing the safe unit 150 from the right specification to the left specification. FIG. 50(a) shows the assembled state of the safe unit 150 of the right specification, FIG. 50(b) shows the disassembled state of the safe unit 150 of the right specification, FIG. 50(c) shows the disassembled state of the safe unit 150 of the left specification, and FIG. 50(d) shows the assembled state of the safe unit 150 of the left specification.

[0159] <Step 1> Disassemble the safe unit 150 into a pressing assembly 151 in which the second side wall 117 of the collection unit 110 and the displacement mechanism unit 120 are integrated, and a storage assembly 152 in which the first side wall 115 side of the collection unit 110 and the storage unit 90 are integrated. Also, remove from the storage assembly 152 a full cup detection assembly 153 composed of a sensor for detecting that the banknotes 6 in the storage unit 90 are full and its support member, and a lock mechanism assembly 154 for locking the door 91 of the storage unit 90 (see Fig. 50(b)).

[0160] <Step 2> (1) Reassembly of the pressing assembly 151 from the right specification to the left specification As shown in Fig. 51, remove the second side wall 117 (the movable wall 117a, the upper second side wall 117b, and the lower second side wall 117c) from the pressing assembly 151 (Fig. (b) of the same figure), reverse the front and back, and assemble it to the pressing assembly 151 (Fig. (c) of the same figure). Also, remove the clamp 155 that was attached to the attachment position for the right specification and assemble it to the attachment position for the left specification.

[0161] (2) Reassembly of the storage assembly 152 from the right specification to the left specification As shown in Fig. 52, remove the guide member 157 such as the first side wall 115 attached to the storage unit 90 side in the collection passage 111, turn it upside down, and reassemble it.

[0162] As shown in Fig. 53, temporarily remove the pressing plate 92 of the storage unit 90, reassemble it from the right specification to the left specification, and reassemble it into the storage unit 90. Specifically, temporarily remove the detection plate 158 that is the detection target of the full cup detection sensor attached to the position of the right specification and the handle 159 for manually moving the pressing plate 92 from the pressing plate 92, attach these to the positions of the left specification, and then reassemble the pressing plate 92 into the storage unit 90.

[0163] As shown in FIG. 54, the full cup detection assembly 153 is recombined from the right specification (FIG. (a) of the same figure) to the left specification (FIG. (b) of the same figure). Specifically, the sensor 153b attached to the support member 153a is removed once, and the sensor 153b is placed at the position of the left specification and reassembled to the support member 153a.

[0164] <Step 3> As shown in FIG. 50(c), the top, bottom, left, and right of the storage assembly 152 are inverted with respect to the right specification orientation, and the full cup detection assembly 153 and the lock mechanism assembly 154 changed to the left specification are attached thereto, and further, the pressing assembly 151 inverted left and right with respect to the right specification orientation is attached.

[0165] Thus, it is changed to the left specification shown in FIG. 50(d).

[0166] Next, the air flow enhancement unit 14 will be described.

[0167] FIG. 55 is a perspective view showing the air flow enhancement unit 14, FIG. 56 is a top view of the air flow enhancement unit 14, FIG. 57 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 56, and FIG. 58 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B in FIG. 56.

[0168] The air flow enhancement unit 14 is provided in the middle of the straight transfer pipe 12. The air flow enhancement unit 14 has a passage portion 171 connected between the transfer pipes 12 and forming a part of the transfer path, and a confluence portion 172 that is erected obliquely upward in the upstream direction (the upstream direction of the transfer direction) from the upper surface of the passage portion 171 and introduces the air flow from the auxiliary blower into the passage portion 171. The confluence portion 172 communicates with the inside of the passage portion 171, and has a confluence base portion 172a having a rectangular cross-sectional tubular shape that extends obliquely upward in the upstream direction from the middle of the passage portion 171, and a cylindrical hose connection portion 172b that is erected obliquely upward in the upstream direction from the upper end of the confluence base portion 172a. A blower hose from the auxiliary blower is connected to the hose connection portion 172b.

[0169] As shown in Fig. 57, inside the confluence base 172a, there is a shutter plate 173 that opens and closes to block the internal air passage below the hose connection part 172b. One end of the shutter plate 173 is rotatably supported by a shaft 174 provided on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the banknote 6 in the passage part 171 of the internal air passage, and is biased by a spring in the direction of blocking the air passage. When the air flow generated by the auxiliary blower is blown in from the hose connection part 172b, the shutter plate 173 opens by its action.

[0170] The shutter plate 173 does not open until the lower end reaches an angle directly below the rotation shaft 174, and the rotation range is regulated so that the angle at which the lower end of the shutter plate 173 is inclined downstream in the conveyance direction from the shaft 174 becomes the opening limit. When receiving the air flow flowing in from the hose connection part 172b, the shutter plate 173 assumes an inclined posture when it opens to the limit position as shown by the dashed line in Fig. 57, so as to guide the inflowing air flow downstream in the conveyance direction.

[0171] On the side wall of the passage part 171, there is a passage sensor 175 for detecting the passage of the conveyance auxiliary body 16.

[0172] In order to effectively utilize the space in the game hall, it is desirable to reduce the thickness of the game machine island 2, and there is little margin in the thickness direction inside the game machine island. Since the air flow enhancement unit 14 blows the air flow from above the passage part 171, the air supply hose connected to the hose connection part 172b is also connected from above, and the installation space in the thickness direction of the game machine island 2 can be suppressed compared with the case of connecting the air supply hose from the side.

[0173] Also, in the air flow enhancement unit 14, since the air flow is blown into the passage part 171 obliquely downward (downstream in the conveyance direction) from above, the air flow can be efficiently enhanced in the downstream direction of the conveyance pipe 12. Note that the air flow enhancement unit 14 may be configured to blow the air flow into the passage part 171 obliquely downward from below, for example.

[0174] Note that the confluence of the air flow into the conveyance pipe by the air flow enhancement unit 14 is not limited to the case where the air flow confluences obliquely downstream from the upper surface (or lower surface) of the conveyance path. The air flow inlet may be provided on the left and right side surfaces of the conveyance pipe 12 to introduce the air flow from the auxiliary blower from the side surfaces of the conveyance pipe and cause confluence. Further, the air flow inlet may be formed to straddle the upper surface and the side surface of the conveyance pipe 12, and the location where the inlet is provided may be any location on the outer periphery of the conveyance pipe.

[0175] As shown in FIG. 58, the air flow enhancement unit 14 is provided with ribs 176 similar to the ribs 34 and 35 of the conveyance pipe 12 over the entire length within the passage portion 171. The air flow enhancement unit 14 has a confluence portion 172 around the center of the entire length of the passage portion 171, and the passage portions 171 of the portions before and after that have the same shape as the conveyance pipe 12. The confluence base portion 172a of the confluence portion 172 has a portion corresponding to the expansion portion 33 of the conveyance pipe 12 and the portion below that has the same inner shape as the conveyance pipe 12. Above the portion corresponding to the expansion portion 33, it has the same air passage width as the expansion portion 33 of the conveyance pipe 12, and inside the air passage, it has a pair of partition walls 177 corresponding to the left and right side wall portions 32 of the conveyance pipe 12.

[0176] The pair of partition walls 177 extends up to the height of the closed position of the shutter plate 173. The shutter plate 173 has a cut 173a at a location corresponding to the pair of partition walls 177 to avoid this. When the shutter plate 173 is in the closed position, the cut 173a is blocked by the partition wall 177 so that air does not leak.

[0177] When the shutter plate 173 is opened, the outer portions of the pair of cuts 173a abut against the inner wall of the confluence base portion 172a to regulate the limit angle of opening.

[0178] By providing the pair of partition walls 177 within the confluence base portion 172a of the confluence portion 172, the air flow enhancement unit 14 makes the inner shape of the paper currency passage the same as the inner shape of the conveyance pipe 12 over the entire length, and can properly maintain the postures of the paper currency 6 and the conveyance auxiliary body 16 and allow them to pass through.

[0179] Since the intake device 13 connected in the middle of the transport pipe 12 has an opening for taking in the banknote 6, even if a lid that opens only when taking in the banknote is provided, the air flow in the transport pipe is likely to leak from the intake device 13. Therefore, it is preferable to provide the air flow enhancement unit 14 downstream of the intake device 13, preferably adjacent to the downstream of the intake device 13. Also, a plurality of (for example, up to 5) air flow enhancement units 14 can be installed in the middle of the transport pipe 12.

[0180] The control of the operation of the air flow enhancement unit 14 will be described.

[0181] The auxiliary blower is activated when the passage of the transport auxiliary body 16 is detected by the passage sensor 175. More specifically, the time required from when the transport auxiliary body 16 is sent out from the sending unit 70 until it reaches the corresponding air flow enhancement unit 14 is measured, etc., and the time of the required time + α is set in advance as the mask time. If there is no obstacle such as clogging, the transport auxiliary body 16 will pass through the corresponding air flow enhancement unit 14 before the mask time elapses after being sent out.

[0182] The air flow enhancement unit 14 operates the auxiliary blower to merge the air flows on the condition that after the transport auxiliary body 16 is sent out, the passage sensor 175 detects the passage of the transport auxiliary body 16 and the mask time has elapsed since the transport auxiliary body 16 was sent out. That is, · After the mask time has elapsed, passage detection · After passage detection, the mask time has elapsed The auxiliary blower is activated in either case.

[0183] The mask time serves to prevent the auxiliary blower from being activated when the banknote 6 taken into the intake device 13 may move in the transport direction due to the action of the air flow and the passage sensor 175 of the air flow enhancement unit 14 detects the banknote 6 before the transport auxiliary body 16 passes.

[0184] When the air flow enhancement unit 14 receives a stop command from the control unit 43 of the separation recovery and delivery device 40, it stops the auxiliary blower. For example, when the separation recovery and delivery device 40 detects the arrival of the transport assist body 16, a stop command is transmitted from the control unit 43 to each air flow enhancement unit 14.

[0185] The stop timing of the auxiliary blower is not limited to this. For example, when a plurality of air flow enhancement units 14 are provided in the middle of the transport path, the auxiliary blower of the first air flow enhancement unit 14 may be stopped on the condition that the second air flow enhancement unit 14 downstream (one or more downstream) from the first air flow enhancement unit 14 has started the auxiliary blower.

[0186] Also, in the transport retry after a transport error, regardless of whether passage is detected, the auxiliary blower is operated after the mask time has elapsed. This is for the purpose of moving the banknote 6 and the transport assist body 16 to the end of the transport pipe by blowing air from the auxiliary blower even when an event occurs where the passage sensor 175 of the air flow enhancement unit 14 cannot detect passage (the transport assist body 16 is transported at high speed).

[0187] Since the air flow enhancement unit 14 operates the auxiliary blower to blow in an air flow after the passage of the transport assist body 16, when the banknote 6 or the transport assist body 16 passes, the shutter plate 173 is in a position that blocks the blowing port and does not obstruct the passage of the banknote 6 or the transport assist body 16. Also, when no air flow is blown from the auxiliary blower, since the shutter plate 173 blocks the air passage of the confluence portion 172, leakage of the air flow in the transport pipe 12 from the confluence portion 172 is prevented.

[0188] As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to that shown in the embodiments, and modifications and additions within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention.

[0189] The shape of the conveyance assist body 16 is not limited to that exemplified in the embodiment. The shape of the conveyance pipe 12 is also not limited to that exemplified in the embodiment. The inner shape may correspond to the shape of the conveyance assist body 16.

[0190] In the embodiment, the paper sheet conveyance device 10 was configured to collect the paper money 6 within the gaming machine island 2 up to the separation, collection, and delivery device 40 at the end of the island. However, it is not limited to this, and it may be specified as a device for collecting paper sheets from a wider range. For example, it may be configured as a conveyance device for collecting the paper money 6 from the safes of each gaming machine island 2 in the game hall to the main safe in the office. Also, the place of use is not limited to the game hall and is applicable to any facility.

[0191] The separation, collection, and delivery device 40 may be configured by extracting some of its functions and forming a separate device. For example, in a paper sheet conveyance device that conveys paper sheets by the action of an air flow without using the conveyance assist body 16, the separation unit 50 becomes unnecessary, and a device that separates the air flow and the paper sheets using the collection unit 110 and the storage unit 90 and stores the paper sheets in the safe may be configured.

[0192] The gaming machine island 2 is not limited to the configuration that houses the gaming machine 4 and the gaming medium lending machine 3 exemplified in the embodiment, and may be a gaming machine island that houses medal lending machines and slot machines, etc. The paper sheets to be conveyed are not limited to paper money.

[0193] In the embodiment, the conveyance assist body 16 was used for conveying paper sheets. However, the present invention is applicable to a conveyance method in which the paper sheets are conveyed by the action of an air flow, and the air flow directly acts on the paper sheets to convey them without using the conveyance assist body 16.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0194] 2... Gaming machine island 3... Gaming medium lending machine 4... Gaming machine 6... Paper money 10... Paper sheet conveyance device 12... Conveyance pipe 12a... Forward path 12b... Turn section 12c…Return path 13…Inlet device 14…Airflow enhancement unit 16…Conveyor auxiliary 16a…Head 16b…Head part 16c…Large-diameter part 16d…Constricted part 18…Wife plate 31…Upper and lower wall parts 32…Side wall part 33…Expansion part 34…Partition wall (rib) 35…Rib 40…Separation, collection, and delivery device 41…Storage box 42…Main body unit 43…Control unit 45…Support frame 46…Door 46a…Window 50…Separation part 51…Conveyor pipe connection port 52…Opening and closing rib 53…Side wall 54(a~e)…Rib 55…Bottom plate 56…Passage wall 56a…Separation part passage 57…Side wall 58…Ceiling wall 59…Bottom wall 61(a~e)…Rib 62(a~e)…Slit 64…Contact part 65…Support plate 66(a~f)…Contact claw 68…Opening and closing drive part 68a…Sensor (detecting the conveyor auxiliary at the supplementary position) 68b…Sensor (detecting the passing of banknotes) 68c…Opening and closing sensor 70…Delivery part 71…Falling passage 72…Conveyor pipe connection port 73…Delivery passage 73a…Airflow intake port 75…Backflow prevention valve 75a…Cover part 75b... Extension part 75c... Axis 76... Guide roller 76a... Rotation axis 77(a~c)... Posture guide member 78(a~c)... Rib 79... Sensor (for detecting the conveying auxiliary body at the standby position) 90... Storage part 91... Door 92... Pressing plate 92a... Base part 92b... Upper pressing part 92c... Lower pressing part 92d... Notch 94... Spring 96... Rubber plate 110... Collection part 111... Collection passage 112... Discharge port at the terminal 113... Contact member 115... First side wall 115a... Upper first side wall 115b... Lower first side wall 115c... Opening 117... Second side wall 117a... Movable wall 117b... Upper second side wall 117c... Lower second side wall 118a... Base plate 118b... Rib 119... Inclined surface part 120... Displacement mechanism part 126, 127... Upper and lower wall parts 130... Air flow generating device 140... Connection duct 141... Suction port 142... Terminal plate 142a... Notch part 144... Lower duct 144a... First opening 144b... Second opening 145... Upper duct 146... Upper and lower connection plate 146a... Notch part 150... Safe unit 151... Pressing assembly 152…Storage assembly 153…Full - detection assembly 153a…Support member 153b…Sensor (full - detection) 154…Lock mechanism assembly 155…Clamp 157…Guide member 158…Detection plate 159…Handle 171…Passage part 172…Confluence part 172a…Confluence base 172b…Hose connection part 173…Shutter plate 173a…Cut 174…Axis 175…Pass - through sensor 176…Rib 177…Partition wall Dx…Distance between reference plane parts of the conveying pipe Dy…Inner dimension of the conveying pipe in the Y - direction F…Extension direction of the conveying pipe W…Passage width X…Passage width direction of the conveying pipe Y…Height direction of the conveying pipe

Claims

[Claim 1] A collection passage that receives and stops paper sheets transported by the action of air flow; an opening provided in a side wall of the recovery passage facing one side of the stopped paper sheets, the opening allowing the paper sheets to pass through when curved; a paper sheet storage section provided adjacent to the side wall, the interior of which communicates with the inside of the recovery passage through the opening; a pressure plate that is biased from the rear side of the storage portion toward the opening to cover the opening; a push-in section which advances into the storage section through the opening from a side wall side of the recovery passage facing the other side of the stopped paper sheet, pushes the paper sheet into the storage section against the pressure plate, and then displaces to return to its original position; having The paper sheets pushed into the storage section return to a flat state and are held between the side wall with the opening and the pressure plate. A paper sheet storage device characterized by the above.

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