Media handling devices

Abstract

It would be desirable to provide a technique that allows for improved usability of media handling devices. [Solution] A media handling device is provided, comprising: a reception unit that accepts media input and dispenses the media; a classification unit that classifies the media dispensed by the reception unit; and a control unit that counts the number of non-recyclable media determined to be ineligible for recycling based on the classification results obtained by the classification unit in a first deposit transaction, and stops the reception unit from dispensing media and controls the transport of the non-recyclable media to a specified cassette when the number of non-recyclable media reaches a predetermined upper limit.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to media handling devices. [Background technology]

[0002] Generally, a cassette can be installed in a media handling device that handles media. A cassette is a container for holding media, and corresponds to a container for the media. Here, banknotes are used as an example of the media. As an example, the media handling device can be incorporated into an automated transaction device such as an automated teller machine (ATM).

[0003] A type of cassette can be set for the cassette. For example, an example of a type of cassette is a cassette that is only for deposits and cannot be withdrawn (hereinafter also referred to as a "deposit cassette"). Patent Document 1 describes that a deposit cassette can be attached to an automated teller machine. The deposit cassette can store banknotes that are not eligible for recycling and banknotes that cannot be recycled, among banknotes deposited by customers. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-157484 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, when there are many transactions involving large amounts of non-recyclable banknotes, the deposit cassette quickly becomes full. When the deposit cassette becomes full, the convenience of the media handling device may be reduced. For example, when the deposit cassette becomes full, a situation may arise in which the automated teller machine stops transactions until the deposit cassette is no longer full.

[0006] It is therefore desirable to provide a technique that allows for improved convenience of media handling devices. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, according to one aspect of the present invention, a media handling device is provided, comprising: a reception unit that accepts media input and dispenses the media; a discrimination unit that discriminates the media dispensed by the reception unit; and a control unit that counts the number of non-recyclable media determined to be ineligible for recycling based on the discrimination results obtained by the discrimination unit in a first deposit transaction, and stops the reception unit from dispensing media and controls the transport of the non-recyclable media to a specified cassette when the number of non-recyclable media reaches a predetermined upper limit.

[0008] When the number of non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the upper limit and the first customer who made the first deposit transaction is the same as the second customer who makes a second deposit transaction following the first deposit transaction, the control unit may stop the reception unit from feeding out media and control the transport of the specified number of media to the specified cassette based on the determination that a specified number of media inserted into the reception unit and identified by the identification unit in the second deposit transaction are not eligible for recycling.

[0009] The predetermined number may be smaller than the upper limit number.

[0010] The control unit may also control the reception unit to display information in the second deposit transaction urging the customer not to insert non-recyclable media if the number of non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the maximum number and if the first customer and the second customer are the same.

[0011] The control unit may also control the display of information encouraging the media to be moved to a designated location based on the determination that the media inserted into the reception unit and identified by the identification unit in the second deposit transaction are not eligible for recycling when the number of non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the maximum number and the first customer and the second customer are the same.

[0012] The control unit may determine whether the first customer and the second customer are the same based on identification information of the first customer and identification information of the second customer.

[0013] The identification information of the first customer may be a facial image of the first customer captured by a camera during the first deposit transaction, and the identification information of the second customer may be a facial image of the second customer captured by the camera during the second deposit transaction.

[0014] The identification information of the first customer may be card information read from a card inserted by the first customer in the first deposit transaction, and the identification information of the second customer may be card information read from a card inserted by the second customer in the second deposit transaction.

[0015] The control unit may also control the display of information indicating that there is an upper limit to the number of non-recyclable media when the number of non-recyclable media reaches the upper limit.

[0016] The control unit may terminate the second deposit transaction when the number of non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the maximum number and when the first customer who conducted the first deposit transaction is the same as the second customer who conducts a second deposit transaction following the first deposit transaction. [Effects of the Invention]

[0017] As described above, the present invention provides a technique that makes it possible to improve the convenience of a medium handling device. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 10 is a diagram showing the state inside the banknote depositing and dispensing machine at the time when a customer has finished inserting banknotes into the banknote depositing and dispensing machine. FIG. [Figure 2] 10 is a diagram showing the state inside the banknote depositing and dispensing machine at the time when depositing into the temporary holding section of the banknote depositing and dispensing machine is completed. FIG. [Figure 3] 10 is a diagram showing the state inside the banknote depositing and dispensing machine at the time when storing of banknotes into the cassette of the banknote depositing and dispensing machine is completed. FIG. [Figure 4] This is a diagram showing the banknotes handled in Indonesia, sorted by type, according to whether they are eligible for recycling or not. [Figure 5] 10 is a diagram for explaining detailed operations from inserting banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to completing deposit into the temporary holding unit 22. FIG. [Figure 6] 10 is a diagram for explaining detailed operations from inserting banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to completing deposit into the temporary holding unit 22. FIG. [Figure 7] 10 is a diagram for explaining detailed operations from inserting banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to completing deposit into the temporary holding unit 22. FIG. [Figure 8] 10 is a diagram for explaining detailed operations from inserting banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to completing deposit into the temporary holding unit 22. FIG. [Figure 9] 1 is an external perspective view showing the configuration of an automated teller machine 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal configuration of a banknote depositing and dispensing machine 11. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure for setting a limit number of sheets. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of a limit number setting screen. [Figure 13] 4 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure during a deposit transaction in the first embodiment. [Figure 14] 14 is a flowchart following the flowchart of FIG. 13. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of a confirmation screen. [Figure 16] 10 is a table showing an example of counting when no limit is set on the number of non-recyclable banknotes. [Figure 17] 10 is a table showing an example of counting when a limit is set on the number of non-recyclable banknotes. [Figure 18] 14 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure executed before step S1 in FIG. 13 in the second embodiment. [Figure 19] 14 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure executed in the case of step S8 (positive result) in FIG. 13 in the second embodiment. [Figure 20] 14 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure executed before step S1 in FIG. 13 in the third embodiment. [Figure 21] 14 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure executed in the case of step S8 (positive result) in FIG. 13 in the third embodiment. [Figure 22] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of an upper limit notification screen 50 displayed in step S67. [Figure 23] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of a removal guidance screen 60 displayed in step S61. [Figure 24] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of a travel guidance screen 70 displayed in step S66. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification and drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0020] (0. Overview) First, an overview of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 8. The embodiment of the present invention mainly relates to an automated teller machine (ATM) and a banknote depositing and dispensing machine incorporated in the ATM.

[0021] Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the state inside the banknote depositing and dispensing machine when a customer has finished inserting banknotes into the banknote depositing and dispensing machine. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the state inside the banknote depositing and dispensing machine when depositing into the temporary holding section of the banknote depositing and dispensing machine has finished. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the state inside the banknote depositing and dispensing machine when storing of banknotes into the cassettes of the banknote depositing and dispensing machine has finished.

[0022] A cassette is a container for storing media and corresponds to a media container. In the following description, the state in which media is stored in a cassette is also referred to as "storing" the media in the cassette. Also, the transition from a state in which no media is stored in a cassette to a state in which media is stored in a cassette is also referred to as "storing" the media. Therefore, a cassette can function as a media storage or media repository.

[0023] Separating one medium from multiple media is also called "separating" the media. Furthermore, "separating" the media can also include removing one medium from another. Removing a medium from a space where the media is stored (for example, a cassette or a cash input / output section) is also called "feeding out" the media.

[0024] An automated teller machine is merely one example of an automated transaction device that executes transactions based on operations input by a customer. Therefore, the automated teller machine in the following description may be replaced with an automated transaction device other than an automated teller machine. A transaction executed by an automated transaction device may be a process that results in the storage of a medium in a cassette or the feeding of a medium from a cassette. For example, if the medium is cash, the process that results in the storage of the medium in the cassette may be a deposit transaction, and the process that results in the feeding of the medium from the cassette may be a withdrawal transaction.

[0025] Furthermore, a banknote deposit and withdrawal machine is merely one example of a medium handling device that handles media. Therefore, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine may be replaced with a medium handling device other than a banknote deposit and withdrawal machine. The banknote deposit and withdrawal machine may also be various types of cash handling machines. For example, the cash handling machine may be a change dispenser or a sales proceeds management device installed in the back room of a store such as a supermarket.

[0026] Cash is just one example of a medium handled by an automated teller machine. Cash may include banknotes and coins. Therefore, a medium handled by an automated teller machine may be a medium other than cash (e.g., a check, paper, ticket, etc.). Similarly, a medium handled by a medium handling device may be a medium other than banknotes, may be coins, or may be a medium other than cash.

[0027] There may be multiple types of denominations of the medium (hereinafter, the types of denominations may also be referred to as "denominations"). More specifically, in the following description, it is mainly assumed that the denomination of the medium is one of "Rp1,000," "Rp2,000," "Rp5,000," "Rp10,000," "Rp20,000," "Rp50,000," and "Rp100,000." Rp stands for rupiah, the unit of currency. However, the denomination of the medium may be changed as appropriate depending on the region where the automated teller machine is installed, etc.

[0028] In this specification, "recycle" may mean that banknotes deposited by customers are circulated within the device and used as banknotes to be dispensed. "Non-recyclable banknotes" may mean banknotes that can be deposited but cannot be dispensed. "Non-recyclable banknotes" are banknotes that were once determined to be recyclable banknotes by the validator 21 and transported to the temporary storage unit 22, but were determined to be rejected banknotes by the validator 21 during the banknote storage stage and transported to the deposit cassette 24E rather than the recycle cassettes 24A-24D. In the drawings, due to space limitations, rejects may be expressed as "RJ."

[0029] 1 to 3, there are shown a deposit / withdrawal unit 20, a discrimination unit 21, a temporary holding unit 22, recycle cassettes 24A to 24D, and a deposit cassette 24E. Here, the recycle cassettes 24A to 24D are cassettes that can deposit and withdraw money, and are cassettes that are set with the denominations of banknotes that can be stored. The deposit cassette 24E is a cassette (a predetermined cassette) that is set exclusively for deposits that cannot be withdrawn. The deposit cassette 24E can store banknotes that are not eligible for recycling and banknotes that cannot be recycled, among the banknotes deposited by customers.

[0030] Generally, in a deposit transaction, as shown in Fig. 1, a customer inserts banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. The deposit / withdrawal unit 20 functions as a reception unit that accepts the banknotes inserted by the customer and separates and dispenses the accepted banknotes, and the discrimination unit 21 discriminates the banknotes dispensed from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. In Fig. 1, "eligible / recyclable banknotes" may refer to banknotes that have been determined to be eligible for handling and also to be eligible for recycling. "eligible / non-recyclable banknotes" may refer to banknotes that have been determined to be eligible for handling and also to be non-eligible for recycling.

[0031] As shown in Fig. 2, among the banknotes validated by the validation unit 21, banknotes that are eligible for handling are transported to the temporary holding unit 22, while banknotes that are not eligible for handling and banknotes that have been identified as abnormal are transported to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. In the following description, banknotes that are not eligible for handling and banknotes that have been identified as abnormal are also referred to as "rejected banknotes." Furthermore, the occurrence of banknotes that are rejected when a deposit is made is also simply referred to as "deposit rejection." Because RJ banknotes are accumulated in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 can function as a reject accumulation unit.

[0032] 3, of the banknotes transported to temporary storage unit 22, banknotes eligible for recycling are transported to recycling cassettes 24A to 24D, and banknotes not eligible for recycling are transported to deposit cassette 24E. Each of recycling cassettes 24A to 24D is set to accommodate only one denomination of banknotes, and the denominations of banknotes that can be transported to recycling cassettes 24A to 24D are limited.

[0033] Furthermore, depending on the country where automated teller machines are installed, the number of types of banknotes (hereinafter also referred to as "denominations") handled by automated teller machines is increasing. For example, in Indonesia, there are seven denominations (types of face value) of banknotes used, and 21 denominations (types of banknotes). Therefore, not all banknotes are handled by automated teller machines, and banknotes other than major banknotes are not handled depending on the hardware configuration of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine or the amount of banknotes in circulation.

[0034] Figure 4 is a diagram showing, by denomination, whether banknotes handled in Indonesia are eligible for recycling and whether they are eligible for recycling. Referring to Figure 4, it can be seen that three denominations of banknotes are not eligible for recycling in Indonesia. Furthermore, even if a banknote is eligible for recycling, if it is older than the year of issue, it may be considered an ineligible banknote because it is collected in order to stop it from circulating in the market. Referring to Figure 4, it can be seen that eight denominations of banknotes are not eligible for recycling in Indonesia.

[0035] In the embodiment of the present invention, an example is mainly assumed in which a note type is associated with each combination of a denomination and an issue year, as shown in Fig. 4. However, a note type may also be associated with each combination of a denomination, an issue year, and information indicating whether or not the note is a commemorative note. In this case, even if a note falls under the category of a recyclable note when only the denomination and issue year are considered, the commemorative note may be determined to be a non-recyclable note.

[0036] 5 to 8 are diagrams for explaining detailed operations from insertion of banknotes into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 to completion of depositing into the temporary holding unit 22. In the examples shown in Figs. 5 to 8, "OK" indicates a banknote that is eligible for handling, and "RJ" indicates a banknote that is not eligible for handling and is a rejected banknote. Furthermore, the numbers (1) to (6) attached to the banknotes indicate the order in which they are separated in the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 and fed out from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20.

[0037] Timing T1 is the stage at which a customer completes inserting banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 in a deposit transaction. Timing T2 is the stage at which separation of banknotes from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 begins, but the discrimination unit 21 determines that "(1) RJ" is a rejected banknote, so separation of banknotes by the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is stopped and the conveyance path is stopped.

[0038] At this time, the transport path from the validation unit 21 to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is used as a temporary storage unit that temporarily stores rejected banknotes. Also, at the stage when the validation unit 21 determines that the "(1) RJ" is a rejected banknote, the "(2) OK" and "(3) OK" that have already been fed out of the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 may not be validated by the validation unit 21.

[0039] Timing T3 is the stage at which "(1) RJ" and "(2) OK" and "(3) OK" that have already been dispensed from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 are transported to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 after preparations for accumulating rejected banknotes are complete in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0040] At timing T4, the first re-separation of banknotes from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 (hereinafter, re-separation will also be referred to as a "retry") is started, but because the validator 21 has determined that "(4) RJ" is a rejected banknote, banknote separation by the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is stopped and the conveyance path is stopped. At this time, there is a possibility that "(5) OK" and "(6) OK" which have already been fed out of the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 will not be validated by the validator 21.

[0041] Timing T5 is the stage at which "(4) RJ" and "(5) OK" and "(6) OK" that have already been dispensed from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 are transported to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 after preparations for accumulating rejected banknotes are complete in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0042] At timing T6, the second separation of banknotes from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is started, but the discrimination unit 21 determines that "(1) RJ" is a rejected banknote, so banknote separation by the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is stopped and the conveyance path is stopped. At this time, there is a possibility that "(2) OK" and "(3) OK" which have already been fed out from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 will not be discriminated by the discrimination unit 21.

[0043] Timing T7 is the stage at which "(1) RJ" and "(2) OK" and "(3) OK" that have already been dispensed from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 are transported to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 after preparations for accumulating rejected banknotes are complete in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0044] Subsequently, a third re-separation of banknotes from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is started, and the third re-separation corresponds to the final re-separation. In the final re-separation, the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 performs intermittent separation to separate the next banknote after the separated banknote has been validated by the validation unit 21.

[0045] At timing T8, the first intermittent separation of banknotes from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 has started, but the discrimination unit 21 has determined that "(4) RJ" is a rejected banknote, so the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 stops separating the banknotes and the conveyance path is stopped. At this time, "(5) OK" and "(6) OK" following "(4) RJ" have not yet been fed out from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0046] Timing T9 is the stage at which, during the second intermittent separation of banknotes from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, the validator 21 determines that the "(5) OK" is a banknote that can be handled, and therefore the "(5) OK" is transported to the temporary holder 22. Timing T10 is the stage at which, during the third intermittent separation of banknotes from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, the validator 21 determines that the "(6) OK" is a banknote that can be handled, and therefore the "(6) OK" is transported to the temporary holder 22.

[0047] At timing T11, the fourth intermittent separation of banknotes from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 has started, but the discrimination unit 21 has determined that "(1) RJ" is a rejected banknote, so the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 stops separating the banknotes and the conveyance path is stopped. At this time, "(2) OK" and "(2) OK" following "(1) RJ" have not yet been fed out from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0048] At timing T12, during the fifth intermittent separation of banknotes from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, the validator 21 determines that the "(2) OK" banknote is a banknote eligible for handling, and therefore the "(2) OK" banknote is transported to the temporary holding unit 22. At timing T13, during the sixth intermittent separation of banknotes from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, the validator 21 determines that the "(3) OK" banknote is a banknote eligible for handling, and therefore the "(3) OK" banknote is transported to the temporary holding unit 22. At this stage, intermittent separation has been completed for the number of banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 by the customer, and therefore the deposit transaction to the temporary holding unit 22 is completed.

[0049] The banknotes that have been determined to be eligible for recycling are transported to temporary storage unit 22 as "(5) OK," "(6) OK," "(2) OK," and "(3) OK." Of these eligible banknotes, banknotes eligible for recycling are transported to one of recycling cassettes 24A to 24D, and banknotes not eligible for recycling are transported to deposit cassette 24E.

[0050] Here, if there are many transactions in which a large amount of non-recyclable banknotes are deposited, the deposit cassette 24E will quickly become full. If the deposit cassette 24E becomes full, the convenience of the banknote deposit and dispensing machine may be reduced. If the deposit cassette 24E becomes full, a situation may arise in which the automated teller machine will suspend transactions until the deposit cassette 24E is cleared. Since the intervention of a bank employee or the like is required to clear the deposit cassette 24E, in many locations where there are no bank employees, the suspension of transactions may last for an extended period of time, causing inconvenience to the bank and customers.

[0051] Incidentally, in addition to non-recyclable banknotes, the non-recyclable banknotes described above are also transported to the deposit cassette 24E. Therefore, when there are a lot of non-recyclable banknotes, the deposit cassette 24E is likely to become full.

[0052] The types of banknotes that can be recycled are often displayed on notices around the ATM or on the ATM's display. However, the types of banknotes that can be recycled are often not displayed on the notices or on the ATM's display, or are displayed in a way that makes them difficult to see, which can lead to large amounts of banknotes that cannot be recycled being deposited.

[0053] Therefore, this specification mainly describes a technology that makes it possible to prevent the deposit cassette 24E, which stores non-recyclable banknotes, from becoming full too quickly. By preventing the deposit cassette 24E from becoming full too quickly, it is also possible to prevent the automated teller machine from suspending transactions.

[0054] The outline of the embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0055] (1. First embodiment) Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0056] (1-1. Configuration of an automated teller machine) Fig. 9 is an external perspective view showing the configuration of an automated teller machine 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the external appearance in Fig. 9, the automated teller machine 1 is installed in, for example, a financial institution and performs cash-related transactions such as deposit transactions and withdrawal transactions with customers. The automated teller machine 1 may be installed in various places such as the lobby of a financial institution, a CS corner (cash service corner), a convenience store, a station, a shopping center, an airport, or in a city.

[0057] The automated teller machine 1 has a box-shaped housing 2, and a camera 2a and a speaker 2b are provided on the front surface of the housing 2 (the surface facing the customer). The camera 2a captures an image of the body part of the customer operating the automated teller machine 1. In the following description, it is mainly assumed that the body part of the customer captured by the camera 2a is the face. However, the body part of the customer captured by the camera 2a may be a part other than the face (for example, the eyes). The speaker 2b notifies the customer of information regarding the transaction by voice.

[0058] Furthermore, the automated teller machine 1 has a customer service section 3 on the front of the housing 2. The customer service section 3 is made up of a card slot 4, a cash slot 5, an operation display section 6, a numeric keypad 7, and a receipt issuing port 8, and is used to directly exchange cash, passbooks, etc. with customers, as well as to notify them of transaction-related information and accept operation instructions.

[0059] Various cards such as cash cards are inserted into the card slot 4. Various cards such as cash cards are also ejected from the card slot 4. A card processing unit (not shown) is provided at the back of the card slot 4 to read account numbers and the like magnetically recorded on various cards.

[0060] Banknotes to be deposited by customers are inserted into the deposit / withdrawal slot 5. Banknotes to be dispensed to customers are also ejected from the deposit / withdrawal slot 5. The deposit / withdrawal slot 5 is designed to be opened or closed by driving a shutter. The operation display unit 6 is composed of an integrated LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) that displays the operation screen during a transaction, and a touch panel for selecting the type of transaction, entering a PIN number, transaction amount, etc.

[0061] The numeric keypad 7 is used to input a PIN number, transaction amount, etc. The receipt issuing slot 8 issues a receipt with transaction details and other information printed on it when the transaction process is complete. A receipt processing unit (not shown) is provided at the back of the receipt issuing slot 8 to print the transaction details and other information on the receipt.

[0062] Furthermore, the automated teller machine 1 includes a main control unit 9 that performs overall control of the automated teller machine 1, a memory unit 10 that stores transaction information and the like, and a banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11 that performs various processes related to the deposit and withdrawal of banknotes. The main control unit 9 is made up of a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and the memory unit 10 is made up of a hard disk drive, flash memory, or the like.

[0063] The banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11 also includes a unit control unit 12 and a memory unit 14. The unit control unit 12 is configured with a processor such as a CPU, and reads and executes predetermined programs from the memory unit 10 via the main control unit 9, thereby controlling each unit of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11 to perform various processes such as deposit transactions and withdrawal transactions. The memory unit 14 is configured with a hard disk drive, flash memory, or the like.

[0064] Figure 10 is a diagram showing the internal configuration of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11. As shown in Figure 10, the upper part of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11 is provided with a deposit and withdrawal unit 20 having a deposit and withdrawal port 5, a discrimination unit 21 that discriminates the denomination and authenticity of banknotes, a temporary holding unit 22 that temporarily holds deposited banknotes, and a special banknote storage unit 23 that stores banknotes that have been determined to be special banknotes (such as counterfeit notes) as a result of discrimination by the discrimination unit 21. A shutter (not shown) is provided in the deposit and withdrawal port 5 of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, and the deposit and withdrawal port 5 is opened and closed by opening and closing this shutter.

[0065] Further, recycle cassettes 24A to 24D and a deposit cassette 24E are provided in the lower part of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11. In the following description, the recycle cassettes 24A to 24D and the deposit cassette 24E may be referred to as a plurality of cassettes 24 (24A to 24E). Further, a special banknote storage unit 25 is provided in the lower part of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11, which stores banknotes that have been determined to be special banknotes as a result of validation by the validation unit 21.

[0066] Additionally, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11 includes a unit control unit 12 and a memory unit 14. The memory unit 14 stores a combination of the denomination and year of issue of banknotes not eligible for recycling as a banknote type. The memory unit 14 can also store a consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, a total limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, a consecutive limit on the number of banknotes not eligible for handling, and a limit on the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling for each banknote type. In the initial state, these limit numbers may be set to some initial value.

[0067] The memory unit 14 may also store the number of consecutive banknotes rejected for deposit, the total number of banknotes rejected for deposit, the number of consecutive banknotes not eligible for handling, and the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling by denomination. In the initial state, the number of consecutive banknotes rejected for deposit, the total number of banknotes rejected for deposit, the number of consecutive banknotes not eligible for handling, and the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling by denomination may each be set to 0.

[0068] Furthermore, the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, the discrimination unit 21, the temporary holding unit 22, the multiple cassettes 24 (24A to 24E), and the special banknote storage units 23 and 25 are connected via a conveyance unit 26. The conveyance unit 26 is composed of rollers and belts (not shown), and conveys rectangular banknotes in the direction of their short sides along a conveyance path 26R indicated by a thick line in the figure. A selector (not shown) is provided at a branch point of the conveyance path 26R, and this selector rotates under the control of the unit control unit 12, thereby switching the destination of the banknote. Furthermore, banknote detection sensors 27 (27a to 27s) are provided at various points on the conveyance path 26R to detect banknotes passing through the conveyance path 26R.

[0069] Also provided are banknote detection sensors 27t to 27v that detect banknotes present inside the depositing and dispensing unit 20. The number of banknote detection sensors that detect banknotes present inside the depositing and dispensing unit 20 may be any number other than three, and may be one, two, or four or more. Furthermore, motors 28 (28A to 28C) are provided at the top inside the banknote depositing and dispensing machine 11 for storing banknotes in the temporary holding unit 22 and for separating and feeding out the banknotes stored in the temporary holding unit 22.

[0070] The deposit / withdrawal unit 20 has both the function of separating banknotes inserted from the deposit / withdrawal slot 5 and feeding them to the transport unit 26, and the function of accumulating banknotes that have been determined to be deposit-reject banknotes that are not suitable for deposit through classification by the classification unit 21. The classification unit 21 classifies the denomination, authenticity, fitness and running state of banknotes passing through it, and also classifies whether the banknotes passing through it are non-eligible banknotes, and notifies the unit control unit 12 of the classification results.

[0071] The temporary holding unit 22 temporarily holds normal banknotes that have been determined by the validator 21 to be depositable among the banknotes inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 by a customer when making a deposit, until the deposit is confirmed. The temporary holding unit 22 also temporarily holds withdrawal-rejected banknotes that have been determined by the validator 21 to be unwithdrawable when making a withdrawal, until the withdrawable banknotes are withdrawn.

[0072] Recycle cassettes 24A-24D are provided, for example, for each denomination, and use a storage and discharge mechanism to take in and store banknotes transported by transport unit 26, and also discharge the stored banknotes and supply them to transport unit 26. As described above, deposit cassette 24E can store banknotes that are not eligible for recycling and banknotes that cannot be recycled, among the banknotes deposited by customers. Note that the multiple cassettes (24A-24E) only need to include at least one deposit cassette, and the other cassettes do not need to be recycle cassettes.

[0073] The automated teller machine 1 has the above-mentioned configuration, and the main control unit 9 and the unit control unit 12 control each unit based on the results of banknote validation by the validation unit 21, to carry out banknote deposit and withdrawal transactions.

[0074] For example, during a deposit transaction, the automated teller machine 1 opens the shutter of the deposit / withdrawal slot 5 when a customer selects a deposit transaction via the operation and display unit 6, closes the shutter when banknotes are inserted through the deposit / withdrawal slot 5, and separates the inserted banknotes one by one in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 and transports them to the discrimination unit 21. Furthermore, the automated teller machine 1 transports banknotes that are determined by the discrimination unit 21 to be normal banknotes that can be deposited to the temporary holding unit 22 and temporarily stores them. On the other hand, banknotes that are determined to be deposit-rejected banknotes that are not suitable for deposit will be returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, but at this time, it is necessary to perform rejected banknote accumulation preparation by moving a bill press (not shown) of the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to switch it to a state where deposit-rejected banknotes can be accumulated.

[0075] Therefore, until preparation for stacking rejected banknotes is completed, the automated teller machine 1 suspends the separation of banknotes by the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, the feeding of banknotes, and the transportation of banknotes by the transport unit 26, and temporarily holds (i.e., stops) the deposited / rejected banknotes in the transport unit 26 from the discrimination unit 21 to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. In other words, at this time, the automated teller machine 1 causes the transport unit 26 from the discrimination unit 21 to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to function as a temporary storage unit that temporarily holds the deposited / rejected banknotes.

[0076] Specifically, as the deposit-rejected banknote approaches the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, the automated teller machine 1 reduces the conveying speed, and completely stops the conveying unit 26 when the deposit-rejected banknote reaches just before the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. At this time, the two banknotes following the deposit-rejected banknote have already been separated by the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, so these two banknotes are also held in the conveying unit 26. In other words, a total of three banknotes, including the first deposit-rejected banknote, are temporarily held in the conveying unit 26.

[0077] Thereafter, when the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is ready to accumulate rejected banknotes, the automated teller machine 1 resumes the transport of banknotes by the transport unit 26, thereby returning the deposited rejected banknote to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. At this time, the automated teller machine 1 also returns to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 the two banknotes that were reserved together with the deposited rejected banknote, regardless of the determination by the discrimination unit 21.

[0078] In this way, in the automated teller machine 1, when the validator 21 determines that a banknote is a deposit-rejected banknote, the banknote and the two following banknotes (a total of three banknotes) are returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, and the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 separates and dispenses the banknotes again (i.e., retries). Note that the automated teller machine 1 anticipates a situation in which, just before stopping the deposit-rejected banknote, the two following banknotes pass through the validator 21 at a conveying speed slower than the normal conveying speed. In such a situation, there is a possibility that these two banknotes (especially the third banknote) will not be properly validated. For this reason, not only the deposit-rejected banknote but also the two following banknotes are returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0079] If, as a result of such retry operation, all banknotes inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 are determined to be normal banknotes (i.e., there are no banknotes rejected for deposit), the automated teller machine 1 displays the total amount of normal banknotes (i.e., the amount deposited) on the operation and display unit 6, and once the deposit amount is confirmed by the customer, the banknotes stored in the temporary holding unit 22 are transported to the discrimination unit 21 to identify their denominations, and are then transported to and stored in one of the recycling cassettes 24A to 24D that corresponds to that denomination.

[0080] On the other hand, if the deposit-rejected banknotes remain even after repeated retry operations, the automated teller machine 1 returns the deposit-rejected banknotes to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, opens the shutter, and returns the deposit-rejected banknotes to the customer. Thereafter, the automated teller machine 1 displays the total amount of normal banknotes other than the deposit-rejected banknotes on the operation and display unit 6, and when the deposit amount is confirmed by the customer, the automated teller machine 1 transports the banknotes stored in the temporary holding unit 22 to the discrimination unit 21 to identify their denominations, and transports them to and stores them in the cassettes 24 (24A to 24E) corresponding to those denominations. The operation of the automated teller machine 1 during a deposit transaction is as described above.

[0081] Furthermore, in the automated teller machine 1, in order to prevent endless retry operations of returning deposited-rejected banknotes to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 and retrying separation and feeding of the banknotes, a total limit on the number of deposited-rejected banknotes and a consecutive limit on the number of deposited-rejected banknotes are set as the upper limit on the number of deposited-rejected banknotes. Furthermore, in addition to the total limit on the number of deposited-rejected banknotes and the consecutive limit on the number of deposited-rejected banknotes, the automated teller machine 1 also sets a consecutive limit on the number of non-handlable banknotes as the upper limit on the number of non-handlable banknotes.

[0082] Furthermore, in the automated teller machine 1, a limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes is set as the upper limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes. In the following explanation, it is mainly assumed that the upper limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes is the total limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes. However, the upper limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes may also be the consecutive limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes. These four types of upper limit on the number of banknotes are stored as setting information, for example, in the memory unit 10. Details of these four types of upper limit on the number of banknotes will be explained later.

[0083] (1-2. Setting the limit number of sheets) Next, the procedure for setting the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the total limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that cannot be handled, and the limit on the number of banknotes that cannot be recycled will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 11 and Fig. 12. Fig. 11 is a flowchart showing the procedure for setting the limit numbers. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing the configuration of a limit number setting screen.

[0084] As shown in FIG. 11, in step S40, when an operation for displaying a limit number setting screen is performed via the operation display section 6, the unit control section 12 displays a limit number setting screen 40 shown in FIG.

[0085] The limit number setting screen 40 is composed of an input field 41 for inputting the numerical value of the consecutive limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit, an input field 42 for inputting the total limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit, an input field 43 for inputting the consecutive limit number of banknotes not eligible for processing, input fields 441 to 447 for inputting the limit number of banknotes not eligible for recycling corresponding to the combination of issue year and denomination, an update button 44 for updating the setting, and a cancel button 45 for canceling the setting. Note that, for example, 20, 20, and 5 are inputted into each of the input fields 41 to 43 as initial setting values, respectively. Also, 5 is inputted into each of the input fields 441 to 447.

[0086] In the next step S41, the unit control section 12 waits for the update button 44 or the cancel button 45 to be pressed, and when the update button 44 or the cancel button 45 is pressed, the process proceeds to step S42.

[0087] In step S42, the unit control section 12 determines whether or not the update button 44 has been pressed. If it determines that the cancel button 45 has been pressed instead of the update button 44, the unit control section 12 proceeds to step S43, displays a message on the operation display section 6 indicating that the limit numbers will not be updated, and ends setting of the limit numbers.

[0088] On the other hand, if it is determined that the update button 44 has been pressed, the unit control unit 12 proceeds from step S42 to step S44 and determines whether the consecutive limit number of banknotes not eligible for handling entered in input field 43 is less than the consecutive limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit entered in input fields 41 and 42, and is also less than the total limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit entered in input field 42.

[0089] If it is determined here that the consecutive limit number of banknotes not to be handled is not less than the consecutive limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit and the total limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S45, displays a message on the operation display unit 6 urging the user to enter a value less than the consecutive limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit and the total limit number of banknotes to be rejected for deposit in the input field 43 for the consecutive limit number of banknotes not to be handled, and then returns to step S41.

[0090] On the other hand, if it is determined that the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling is lower than the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit and the total limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the unit control unit 12 proceeds from step S44 to step S46, updates the numerical values ​​stored in the memory unit 14 as the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the total limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, and the limit on the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling by type, with the numerical values ​​entered in each of the input fields 41 to 43 and 441 to 447, and displays a message on the operation display unit 6 to indicate that the updates have been made.

[0091] The unit control unit 12 also calculates the total number of the limit number of non-recycling banknotes for each denomination as the limit number of non-recycling banknotes, and stores the calculated limit number of non-recycling banknotes in the memory unit 14. The limit number of non-recycling banknotes is used to determine whether the number of non-recycling banknotes has reached the limit number of non-recycling banknotes. Note that the total number of the limit number of non-recycling banknotes for each denomination may be input directly. Then, the unit control unit 12 finishes setting each limit number.

[0092] In the automated teller machine 1, the limit number for each banknote is set in this manner, and the limit number of consecutive banknotes that cannot be handled is set to a value that is smaller than the limit number of consecutive banknotes that can be rejected for deposit and the limit number of total banknotes that can be rejected for deposit.

[0093] (1-3. Behavior during deposit transactions) Next, the operational procedure for a deposit transaction by the automated teller machine 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to Figs. 13 to 15. Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing the operational procedure for a deposit transaction in the first embodiment. Fig. 14 is a flowchart following the flowchart in Fig. 13. Fig. 15 is a diagram showing the configuration of a confirmation screen.

[0094] When the unit control unit 12 starts a deposit transaction, in step S1, it opens the shutter of the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. In the following step S2, the unit control unit 12 enters a banknote insertion waiting state, waiting for banknotes to be inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. In the following steps S3 and S4, the unit control unit 12 determines whether or not a banknote has been inserted normally from the time it enters the banknote insertion waiting state until a set insertion timeout period has elapsed. Here, if a banknote has not been inserted normally and the insertion timeout period has elapsed, the unit control unit 12 continues to obtain a negative result in step S3 and then obtains a positive result in step S4, and proceeds to step S5, closes the shutter, and ends the deposit transaction.

[0095] On the other hand, if the bill is inserted normally before the insertion timeout period has elapsed, the unit control section 12 obtains a positive result in step S3, moves to step S6, and closes the shutter.

[0096] In step S7 following step S6, the unit control section 12 separates one of the banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing section 20 and sends it to the feeding / dispensing section 21 for discrimination.

[0097] In step S8, when the discrimination unit 21 determines that one banknote separated and fed in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is a deposit-rejected banknote, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S9. The deposit-rejected banknotes determined by the discrimination unit 21 include genuine-rejected banknotes determined to be counterfeit and therefore abnormal, running-rejected banknotes determined to be in an abnormal running state due to skew or double feeding, unfit-rejected banknotes determined to be in an abnormal fitness state due to dirt, and unsuitable banknotes determined to be ineligible for handling.

[0098] Therefore, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S9 when it determines that one of the separated banknotes is a deposit-rejected banknote, which is either a genuine or counterfeit rejected banknote, a running rejected banknote, a fit or damaged rejected banknote, or a banknote that is not eligible for handling.

[0099] In step S9, the unit control unit 12 counts the number of consecutive banknotes rejected for deposit and the total number of banknotes rejected for deposit. If the banknotes rejected for deposit are non-transferable banknotes, the unit control unit 12 also counts the number of consecutive non-transferable banknotes.

[0100] The total number of deposit-rejected banknotes is the total number of banknotes that have been determined by the validator 21 to be deposit-rejected banknotes since the start of a deposit transaction, and its initial value is 0. Each time a banknote is determined to be a deposit-rejected banknote by the validator 21, the unit controller 12 counts (+1) the total number of deposit-rejected banknotes. As mentioned above, the two banknotes following a deposit-rejected banknote may not be properly validated, so only the first deposit-rejected banknote of the three banknotes returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is counted.

[0101] The number of consecutive banknotes rejected for deposit is the number of consecutive banknotes that have been determined to be rejected banknotes since the start of a deposit transaction, and its initial value is 0. The unit control unit 12 counts the number of consecutive banknotes rejected for deposit each time a banknote is consecutively determined to be a rejected banknote by the validator 21. Note that the two banknotes following a rejected banknote are not counted because there is a possibility that they have not been correctly validated, and the banknotes following these two banknotes are counted.

[0102] Furthermore, the number of consecutive rejected banknotes is set to 1 the first time a banknote is determined to be a rejected banknote since the start of a deposit transaction, and is only counted if the banknote is subsequently determined to be a rejected banknote in succession. In other words, the number of consecutive rejected banknotes indicates the number of consecutive rejected banknotes found after the first rejected banknote. Therefore, the number of consecutive rejected banknotes is determined when the consecutive detections following the first rejected banknote are broken, and from then on, the number of consecutive rejected banknotes is not counted, no matter how many consecutive rejected banknotes are found.

[0103] The consecutive number of unacceptable banknotes is the number of consecutive banknotes that have been determined to be unacceptable banknotes since the start of a deposit transaction, and its initial value is 0. The unit control unit 12 counts the consecutive number of unacceptable banknotes each time a banknote is consecutively determined to be an unacceptable banknote by the validator 21. Note that in this case as well, the two banknotes following the unacceptable banknote that has been rejected as a deposit note are not counted, and only the banknotes following these two banknotes are counted.

[0104] Similarly to the number of consecutive rejected deposit notes, the number of consecutive rejected notes is set to 1 the first time a note is determined to be an unacceptable note after the start of a deposit transaction, and is then counted each time a note is consecutively determined to be an unacceptable note. In other words, the number of consecutive rejected notes indicates the number of consecutive unacceptable notes found after the first unacceptable note.

[0105] After counting the total number of deposit-rejected banknotes, the consecutive number of deposit-rejected banknotes, and the consecutive number of non-processable banknotes, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to the next step S10. In step S10, the unit control unit 12 determines whether the consecutive number of non-processable banknotes has reached the consecutive non-processable banknote limit set as the upper limit for the consecutive number of non-processable banknotes. If the unit control unit 12 determines that the consecutive number of non-processable banknotes has not reached the consecutive non-processable banknote limit, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S11.

[0106] In step S11, the unit control unit 12 determines whether the number of consecutive banknotes that have been rejected for deposit has reached the limit number of consecutive banknotes that have been rejected for deposit, which is set as the upper limit of the number of consecutive banknotes that have been rejected for deposit. If it is determined that the number of consecutive banknotes that have been rejected for deposit has not reached the limit number of consecutive banknotes that have been rejected for deposit, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S12.

[0107] In step S12, the unit control unit 12 determines whether the total number of deposit-rejected banknotes has reached the total limit for deposit-rejected banknotes, which is set as the upper limit for the total number of deposit-rejected banknotes. The total limit for deposit-rejected banknotes is set to a value equal to or greater than the consecutive limit for deposit-rejected banknotes, and the consecutive limit for non-handled banknotes is set to a value smaller than both the consecutive limit for deposit-rejected banknotes and the total limit for deposit-rejected banknotes. If the unit control unit 12 determines that the total number of deposit-rejected banknotes has not reached the total limit for deposit-rejected banknotes, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S13.

[0108] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S10 that the number of consecutive non-handlable banknotes has reached the limit for consecutive non-handlable banknotes, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S13. In step S13, the unit control unit 12 changes the setting of the retry operation from "with retry" which performs a retry operation to "without retry" which does not perform a retry operation, and proceeds to step S14.

[0109] Similarly, if it is determined in step S11 that the number of consecutive banknotes rejected for deposit has reached the limit for consecutive banknotes rejected for deposit, or if the total number of banknotes rejected for deposit has reached the total limit for banknotes rejected for deposit in step S12, the unit control unit 12 also changes the retry operation setting from "with retry" to "without retry" in step S13 and proceeds to step S14. In step S14, the unit control unit 12 returns the found rejected banknote and the two following banknotes to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 and proceeds to the next step, S21.

[0110] In this way, in the automated teller machine 1, when the number of consecutive banknotes that are not eligible for processing, the number of consecutive banknotes that are rejected for deposit, or the total number of banknotes that are rejected for deposit reaches the upper limit, the retry operation setting is changed to "no retry" and the retry operation is terminated to prevent further unnecessary retry operations from being repeated.

[0111] On the other hand, in step S8, if the validator 21 determines that one banknote separated and fed in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is a normal banknote, the unit controller 12 acquires the validation result notified by the validator 21, and in step S15 conveys the normal banknote to the temporary holder 22, and then proceeds to step S16. The validation result includes the denomination of the banknote validated by the validator 21.

[0112] In step S16, the unit control unit 12 determines whether the banknotes validated by the validation unit 21 are non-recycling banknotes. For example, the unit control unit 12 can determine whether the banknotes validated by the validation unit 21 are non-recycling banknotes by determining whether the denominations of the banknotes included in the validation result match the denominations of the banknotes stored in the memory unit 14.

[0113] If the unit control unit 12 determines that the banknote denomination matching the banknote denomination included in the validation result is present among the denominations of non-recycling banknotes stored in the memory unit 14, the unit control unit 12 determines that the banknote validated by the validation unit 21 is a non-recycling banknote. On the other hand, if the banknote denomination matching the banknote denomination included in the validation result is not present among the denominations of non-recycling banknotes stored in the memory unit 14, the unit control unit 12 determines that the banknote validated by the validation unit 21 is a recycling banknote.

[0114] If the unit control unit 12 determines that the banknotes validated by the validator 21 are banknotes eligible for recycling, the process proceeds to step S21. On the other hand, if the unit control unit 12 determines that the banknotes validated by the validator 21 are banknotes not eligible for recycling, the unit control unit 12 counts (+1) the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling in step S17.

[0115] In step S18, it is determined whether the number of non-recycling banknotes has reached the limit for non-recycling banknotes. If the number of non-recycling banknotes has not reached the limit, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S21. On the other hand, if the number of non-recycling banknotes has reached the limit, the unit control unit 12 stops the separation and feeding of banknotes by the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 in step S19, changes the retry operation setting from "with retry" to "without retry" in step S20, and proceeds to step S21.

[0116] In step S21, the unit control unit 12 determines whether or not separation of all of the banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 has been completed. Here, if all of the banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 are held in the temporary holding unit 22 as normal banknotes, the unit control unit 12 determines that separation of all of the banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 has been completed, and proceeds to step S23. Note that the completion of separation of all of the banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 may also be determined when no banknotes are detected by any of the banknote detection sensors 27t to 27v that detect banknotes present inside the depositing / withdrawing unit 20.

[0117] On the other hand, if, for example, there are banknotes that have never been separated or rejected banknotes that were returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 in step S14 above remaining in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, the unit control unit 12 determines that separation of all banknotes inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 has not yet been completed, and proceeds to step S22.

[0118] In step S22, the unit control unit 12 determines whether the retry operation setting is "with retry." If the retry operation setting is "with retry," this means that none of the consecutive numbers of non-eligible banknotes, consecutive number of banknotes rejected for deposit, total number of banknotes rejected for deposit, and number of banknotes not eligible for recycling have reached their upper limits. In this case, the unit control unit 12 returns to step S7 and continues separating and validating the banknotes stacked in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0119] On the other hand, if the retry operation is set to "no retry" because any of the consecutive number of banknotes not eligible for handling, the consecutive number of banknotes rejected for deposit, the total number of banknotes rejected for deposit, and banknotes not eligible for recycling has reached the upper limit, the unit control unit 12 determines in step S22 that the setting is not "with retry," stops separating and feeding out the banknotes remaining in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, and proceeds to step S23.

[0120] In step S23, the unit control unit 12 determines whether or not any banknotes remain in the depositing / dispensing unit 20. Note that whether or not any banknotes remain in the depositing / dispensing unit 20 may be determined by the detection of banknotes by at least one of the banknote detection sensors 27t to 27v that detect banknotes present inside the depositing / dispensing unit 20. Here, if separation of banknotes has been stopped with banknotes remaining in the depositing / dispensing unit 20 because at least one of the number of consecutive non-eligible banknotes, the number of consecutive non-deposit-rejected banknotes, the total number of non-recycling banknotes has reached its upper limit, the unit control unit 12 determines in step S23 that any banknotes remain in the depositing / dispensing unit 20, and proceeds to step S24.

[0121] In step S24, the unit control unit 12 opens the shutter of the depositing / withdrawing unit 20. In the following step S25, the unit control unit 12 waits for a banknote to be removed from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20. When the banknote is removed from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, in the following step S26, the unit control unit 12 closes the shutter and proceeds to step S27. Note that the removal of a banknote from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 may also be determined when none of the banknote detection sensors 27t to 27v that detect banknotes present inside the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 detects the banknote.

[0122] On the other hand, if all of the banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 are transported to the temporary holding unit 22 as normal banknotes and no banknotes remain in the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, the unit control unit 12 determines in step S23 that no banknotes remain in the depositing / withdrawing unit 20. In this case, the unit control unit 12 skips the processes of steps S24 to S26 and proceeds to step S27.

[0123] In step S27, the unit control unit 12 causes the operation display unit 6 to display a confirmation screen 30 shown in Fig. 15. The confirmation screen 30 displays the total amount of banknotes determined to be normal banknotes (i.e., banknotes stored in the temporary holding unit 22), and further displays a confirmation button 31 for confirming the displayed total amount as the deposit amount, an add button 32 for inserting additional banknotes, and a cancel button 33 for canceling the deposit.

[0124] Here, when the customer presses the add button 32 on the confirmation screen 30, the unit control unit 12 returns to step S1 and opens the shutter of the depositing / withdrawing unit 20. Also, when the customer presses the confirm button 31, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S28 and separates the banknotes stored in the temporary holding unit 22, transports and stores the banknotes eligible for recycling in one of the recycling cassettes 24A to 24D that corresponds to the denomination of the banknote, and transports and stores the banknotes not eligible for recycling in the deposit cassette 24E, and then completes the deposit transaction.

[0125] Furthermore, when the customer presses the cancel button 33, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S29, where it separates the banknotes stored in the temporary storage unit 22 and returns them to the depositing / withdrawing unit 20. In the following step S30, the unit control unit 12 opens the shutter of the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, and in the following step S31, it waits for the banknotes to be removed from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20. Then, when the banknotes are removed from the depositing / withdrawing unit 20, in the following step S32, the unit control unit 12 closes the shutter and ends the deposit transaction. Note that if the cancel button 33 is pressed when no banknotes are stored in the temporary storage unit 22, the processing of steps S29 to S32 is skipped and the deposit transaction ends.

[0126] When a deposit transaction is completed, the unit control unit 12 resets the number of consecutive non-recyclable banknotes, the number of consecutive deposit-rejected banknotes, and the total number of deposit-rejected banknotes to 0. In the following description, it is assumed that the unit control unit 12 resets the number of non-recyclable banknotes to 0. However, the unit control unit 12 does not have to reset the number of non-recyclable banknotes when a deposit transaction is completed. In this case, the unit control unit 12 may reset the number of non-recyclable banknotes to 0 when the non-recyclable banknotes are removed from the deposit cassette 24E.

[0127] The automated teller machine 1 operates as follows during a deposit transaction: if any of the consecutive number of banknotes that are not eligible for handling, the consecutive number of banknotes that are rejected for deposit, the total number of banknotes that are rejected for deposit, or the number of banknotes that are not eligible for recycling reaches an upper limit, the retry operation ends, the banknotes that are rejected for deposit are returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, and the banknotes remaining in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, including the banknotes that were rejected for deposit, are returned to the customer.

[0128] Here, using Figures 16 and 17, we will explain how the number of non-recyclable banknotes stored in deposit cassette 24E changes from the start of separation of banknotes inserted into deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to the end of the deposit transaction, depending on whether a limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes is set in the automated teller machine 1 or a limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes is set.

[0129] Figure 16 is a table showing an example of counting when no limit is set on the number of non-recycling banknotes, and Figure 17 is a table showing an example of counting when a limit is set on the number of non-recycling banknotes.

[0130] 16 and 17, it is assumed that 20 recyclable banknotes, 30 non-recyclable banknotes, and 10 non-recyclable and abnormally validated banknotes are input into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. It is also assumed that the banknotes separated by the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 are transported in the following order: non-recyclable banknotes, non-recyclable banknotes, recyclable banknotes, etc. In the example shown in Fig. 17, the limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes is set to 5.

[0131] Banknotes eligible for recycling and banknotes not eligible for recycling are transported to the temporary holding unit 22, while banknotes not eligible for recycling and banknotes that have been identified as abnormal are transported to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. Figures 16 and 17 show the number of banknotes eligible for recycling, the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling, and the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling and banknotes that have been identified as abnormal, transported from the start of banknote separation to the end of the deposit transaction.

[0132] 16, if a limit on the number of non-recycling banknotes is not set, 30 non-recycling banknotes are transported to the temporary storage unit 22. Then, all of the 30 non-recycling banknotes transported to the temporary storage unit 22 are transported to the deposit cassette 24E.

[0133] The 20 recyclable banknotes are transported to temporary storage unit 22, and are then transported from temporary storage unit 22 to a recyclable cassette among recyclable cassettes 24 to 24D that corresponds to the denomination of the banknotes. The 10 non-eligible banknotes and invalid banknotes are returned to deposit / withdrawal unit 20, and are returned to the customer from deposit / withdrawal unit 20. If no limit is set on the number of non-recyclable banknotes, many non-eligible banknotes will be transported to deposit cassette 24E, which will easily become full.

[0134] 17, when the limit number of non-recycling banknotes is set to five, after the five non-recycling banknotes are transported to the temporary storage unit 22, separation and feeding of banknotes in the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 is stopped and the retry operation is discontinued.The five non-recycling banknotes transported to the temporary storage unit 22 are then transported to the deposit cassette 24E.

[0135] The three recyclable banknotes have been transported to temporary storage unit 22, and are then transported from temporary storage unit 22 to a recycle cassette among recycle cassettes 24 to 24D that corresponds to the denomination of the banknotes. The non-eligible banknotes and the two invalid banknotes have been returned to deposit / withdrawal unit 20, and are returned to the customer from deposit / withdrawal unit 20. When a limit on the number of non-recyclable banknotes is set in this way, it becomes possible to limit the number of non-eligible banknotes transported to deposit cassette 24E, making it less likely that deposit cassette 24E will become full.

[0136] (1-4. Effects of the First Embodiment) As described above, in the first embodiment of the present invention, the unit control unit 12 counts the number of non-recycling banknotes that have been determined to be non-recycling banknotes based on the validation results obtained by the validation unit 21. Then, when the number of non-recycling banknotes has reached a predetermined limit for non-recycling banknotes, the unit control unit 12 stops the separation and feeding of banknotes by the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 and controls the transport of the non-recycling banknotes to the deposit cassette 24E.

[0137] According to this configuration, the deposit cassette 24E can be prevented from becoming full immediately. By preventing the deposit cassette 24E from becoming full immediately, it is possible to improve the convenience of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11. For example, by preventing the deposit cassette 24E from becoming full immediately, it is possible to reduce the frequency with which the automated teller machine 1 suspends transactions until the deposit cassette 24E is no longer full.

[0138] The first embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0139] (2. Second Embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the following, a description of common parts between the second embodiment of the present invention and the first embodiment of the present invention will be omitted, and parts of the second embodiment of the present invention that are different from the first embodiment of the present invention will be mainly described.

[0140] The second embodiment of the present invention will also be described with reference to the external perspective view (FIG. 9) showing the configuration of the automated teller machine 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention and the diagram (FIG. 10) showing the internal configuration of the banknote depositing and dispensing machine 11 as appropriate.

[0141] (2-1. Configuration of an automated teller machine) In a second embodiment of the present invention, a case is assumed in which a customer attempts to deposit more non-recyclable banknotes than the limit. Furthermore, a case is assumed in which the number of non-recyclable banknotes is reset to 0 at the end of the deposit transaction. In such a case, the customer can only deposit up to the limit of non-recyclable banknotes in the first deposit transaction. However, in a second deposit transaction following the first deposit transaction, the customer again deposits up to the limit of non-recyclable banknotes.

[0142] Therefore, in the second embodiment of the present invention, the unit control unit 12 determines whether or not both the condition that the number of non-recycling banknotes in the immediately preceding deposit transaction has reached the limit number of non-recycling banknotes (hereinafter referred to as the "non-recycling banknote number condition") and the condition that the customer who made the immediately preceding deposit transaction and the customer making the current deposit transaction are the same customer (hereinafter also referred to as the "same customer condition") are satisfied.

[0143] If the unit control unit 12 determines that both the condition for the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling and the condition for the same customer are met, it stops the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 from feeding banknotes and controls the transport of the specified number of banknotes to the deposit cassette 24E based on the determination that a specified number of banknotes inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 and identified by the identification unit 21 in the current deposit transaction are not eligible for recycling.

[0144] Here, the most recent deposit transaction may be the first deposit transaction. The current deposit transaction may be the second deposit transaction following the first deposit transaction. The customer who made the most recent deposit transaction may be the first customer. The customer who is making the current deposit transaction may be the second customer.

[0145] In the following explanation, it is mainly assumed that the predetermined number is one. However, the predetermined number may be any number less than the limit for the number of non-recyclable banknotes. As a result, if a customer attempts to deposit more non-recyclable banknotes than the limit, the customer will only be able to deposit fewer non-recyclable banknotes than the limit in a second deposit transaction following the first.

[0146] Various methods can be adopted to determine whether the same customer condition is satisfied. For example, the unit control unit 12 may determine whether the customer who performed the immediately previous deposit transaction and the customer who is performing the current deposit transaction are the same based on the facial image of the customer captured by the camera 2a in the immediately previous deposit transaction and the facial image of the customer captured by the camera 2a in the current deposit transaction.

[0147] For example, the unit control unit 12 may determine whether the customer who made the previous deposit transaction and the customer who is making the current deposit transaction are the same based on the identification information of the customer who made the previous deposit transaction and the identification information of the customer who is making the current deposit transaction.

[0148] Here, the identification information of the customer who made the previous deposit transaction may be the facial image of the customer captured by camera 2a in the previous deposit transaction. Also, the identification information of the customer making the current deposit transaction may be the facial image of the customer captured by camera 2a in the current deposit transaction. More specifically, unit control unit 12 may calculate the similarity between the facial image of the customer captured by camera 2a in the previous deposit transaction and the facial image of the customer captured by camera 2a in the current deposit transaction, and determine whether the customer who made the previous deposit transaction and the customer making the current deposit transaction are the same depending on whether the similarity is equal to or greater than a threshold.

[0149] The facial image may be captured by the camera 2a when the customer selects a deposit transaction as the transaction to be executed by the automated teller machine 1. Information associating the transaction type with the facial image may then be stored as a transaction history. The unit control unit 12 may acquire the facial image from the transaction history. The transaction history may be stored in the storage unit 10 of the automated teller machine 1, or may be stored in a host computer (not shown) connected to the automated teller machine 1.

[0150] Alternatively, the identification information of the customer who made the previous deposit transaction may be card information read by a card processing unit (not shown) from the card inserted by the customer into the card slot 4 in the previous deposit transaction. Also, the identification information of the customer making the current deposit transaction may be card information read by a card processing unit (not shown) from the card inserted by the customer into the card slot 4 in the current deposit transaction. The unit control unit 12 may determine whether the customer who made the previous deposit transaction and the customer making the current deposit transaction are the same based on whether these two pieces of card information match.

[0151] The card information may be read by a card processing unit (not shown) when a customer selects a deposit transaction as the transaction to be executed by the automated teller machine 1. Then, information associating the transaction type with the card information may be stored as a transaction history. The unit control unit 12 may acquire the card information from the transaction history. As described above, the transaction history may be stored in the memory unit 10 of the automated teller machine 1, or may be stored in a host computer (not shown) connected to the automated teller machine 1.

[0152] (2-2. Operation during deposit transaction) Next, the operational procedures for a deposit transaction by an automated teller machine 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail, mainly with reference to Figures 18 and 19. Figure 18 is a flowchart showing the operational procedures executed before step S1 in Figure 13 in the second embodiment. Figure 19 is a flowchart showing the operational procedures executed in the case of step S8 (positive result) in Figure 13 in the second embodiment.

[0153] 18 and 19, a flag indicating whether the limit number of non-recyclable banknotes has been reached (hereinafter also referred to as a "limit number reached flag") is used. The limit number reached flag is set to OFF as an initial value.

[0154] As shown in Fig. 18, when a deposit transaction is started, the unit control unit 12 determines in step S51 whether the limit number reached flag is ON. If the unit control unit 12 determines that the limit number reached flag is OFF, the process proceeds to S1 (Fig. 13). On the other hand, if the unit control unit 12 determines that the limit number reached flag is ON, the process proceeds to step S52, where it determines whether the customer who performed the previous deposit transaction and the customer performing the current deposit transaction are the same.

[0155] If the customer who made the previous deposit transaction and the customer making the current deposit transaction are the same, the unit control unit 12 sets the limit number of non-recyclable banknotes to 1 in step S53 and proceeds to step S1 (Fig. 13).On the other hand, if the customer who made the previous deposit transaction and the customer making the current deposit transaction are not the same, the unit control unit 12 sets the limit number reached flag to OFF in step S54 and proceeds to step S1 (Fig. 13).

[0156] The timing at which the limit number reached flag is set to OFF does not have to be limited to when a negative result is obtained in step 52. For example, the limit number reached flag may be set to OFF when a transaction other than a deposit transaction (e.g., a withdrawal transaction) is executed, or when an initialization process is executed.

[0157] 13 are executed, and if a positive result is obtained in step S8, steps S15 to S20 are executed. In step S55 following step S20, the unit control section 12 sets the limit number reached flag to ON, and proceeds to step S21 (FIG. 14).

[0158] (2-3. Effects of the Second Embodiment) As described above, the second embodiment of the present invention can achieve the same effects as the first embodiment of the present invention. Furthermore, in the second embodiment of the present invention, when it is determined that both the non-recycling banknote quantity condition and the same customer condition are satisfied, the unit control unit 12 stops the feeding of banknotes by the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 and controls the transport of the predetermined number of banknotes to the deposit cassette 24E, based on the determination that a predetermined number of banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 and validated by the validation unit 21 in the current deposit transaction are non-recycling banknotes.

[0159] Here, the predetermined number may be any number less than the limit for non-recycling banknotes. As a result, if a customer attempts to deposit more non-recycling banknotes than the limit, the customer will only be able to deposit fewer non-recycling banknotes than the limit in a second deposit transaction following the first.

[0160] This configuration can further prevent the deposit cassette 24E from becoming full immediately, thereby further improving the convenience of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 11. For example, by further preventing the deposit cassette 24E from becoming full immediately, it can further reduce the frequency with which the automated teller machine 1 suspends transactions until the deposit cassette 24E is no longer full.

[0161] The second embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0162] (3. Third Embodiment) Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the following, a description of common parts between the third embodiment of the present invention and the second embodiment of the present invention will be omitted, and parts of the third embodiment of the present invention that are different from the second embodiment of the present invention will be mainly described.

[0163] Note that a difference between the third embodiment of the present invention and the second embodiment of the present invention and an embodiment added to the first embodiment of the present invention may be provided. That is, the third embodiment of the present invention may not have a part corresponding to the difference between the first embodiment of the present invention and the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0164] The third embodiment of the present invention will also be described with reference to the external perspective view (FIG. 9) showing the configuration of the automated teller machine 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention and the diagram (FIG. 10) showing the internal configuration of the banknote depositing and dispensing machine 11 as appropriate.

[0165] In the second embodiment of the present invention, when the unit control unit 12 determines that both the non-recycling banknote number condition and the same customer condition are met, it stops the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 from feeding banknotes and controls the transport of the predetermined number of banknotes to the deposit cassette 24E based on the determination that a predetermined number of banknotes inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 and identified by the identification unit 21 in the current deposit transaction are not eligible for recycling.

[0166] If the predetermined number is less than the limit for non-recyclable banknotes, the customer will only be able to deposit fewer non-recyclable banknotes than the limit in a second deposit transaction following the first. This increases the likelihood that banknotes will be returned to the customer from the deposit / withdrawal unit 20, and increases the likelihood that the customer will repeat deposit transactions if they do not understand why the banknotes were returned, thereby increasing the likelihood that the automated teller machine 1 will be occupied for a long period of time.

[0167] Therefore, in the third embodiment of the present invention, the unit control section 12 controls the depositing / withdrawing section 20 so that the reason why the banknotes have been returned is presented to the customer.

[0168] Specifically, the unit control unit 12 controls the display unit 10 so that, when the number of non-recycling banknotes reaches the limit, information indicating that there is an upper limit on the number of non-recycling media (hereinafter also referred to as "upper limit notification information") is presented to the customer. In the following explanation, it is mainly assumed that the upper limit notification information is presented by a screen display on the operation and display unit 6. However, the upper limit notification information may also be presented by voice from the speaker 2b.

[0169] Furthermore, when the unit control unit 12 determines that both the non-recycling banknote quantity condition and the same customer condition are satisfied, it controls the display so that information urging the customer not to insert non-recycling banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 during the current deposit transaction (hereinafter also referred to as "removal guidance information") is presented to the customer. In the following explanation, it is mainly assumed that the removal guidance information is presented by a screen display on the operation display unit 6. However, the removal guidance information may also be presented by voice from the speaker 2b.

[0170] Furthermore, when the unit control unit 12 determines that both the non-recycling banknote quantity condition and the same customer condition are satisfied, it controls the display of information (hereinafter also referred to as "movement guidance information") urging the customer to move to a predetermined location based on the fact that the banknotes inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 and discriminated by the discrimination unit 21 in the current deposit transaction are determined to be non-recycling banknotes. In the following explanation, it is mainly assumed that the movement guidance information is presented by a screen display on the operation display unit 6. However, the movement guidance information may also be presented by sound from the speaker 2b.

[0171] (3-2. Behavior during deposit transactions) Next, the operational procedures for a deposit transaction by the automated teller machine 1 according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail, mainly with reference to Fig. 20 to Fig. 24. Fig. 20 is a flowchart showing the operational procedures executed before step S1 in Fig. 13 in the third embodiment. Fig. 21 is a flowchart showing the operational procedures executed in the case of step S8 (positive result) in Fig. 13 in the third embodiment.

[0172] As shown in Fig. 20, when a deposit transaction is started, steps S51 to S54 are executed. In step S61 following step S53, the unit control unit 12 causes the operation display unit 6 to display a removal guidance screen 60 (Fig. 23) including removal guidance information, and proceeds to step S1 (Fig. 13). The removal guidance screen 60 (Fig. 23) will be described later.

[0173] Steps S1 to S8 in Fig. 13 are executed, and if a positive result is obtained in step S8, step S15 is executed, and the unit control unit 12 determines in step S62 whether the limit number of non-recycling banknotes is 1. If a positive result is obtained in step S62, the unit control unit 12 determines in step S63 following step S62 whether the banknote discriminated by the discriminator 21 is a non-recycling banknote.

[0174] If the unit control unit 12 determines that the banknotes validated by the validator 21 are banknotes eligible for recycling, the process proceeds to step S14. On the other hand, if the unit control unit 12 determines that the banknotes validated by the validator 21 are banknotes not eligible for recycling, the unit control unit 12 stops the separation and feeding of the banknotes by the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 in step S64, changes the setting of the retry operation from "with retry" to "without retry" in step S65, and displays a movement guidance screen 70 (FIG. 24) including movement guidance information on the operation display unit 6 in step S66, and then proceeds to step S21. The movement guidance screen 70 (FIG. 24) will be described later.

[0175] On the other hand, if a negative result is obtained in step S62, steps S17 to S20 following step S62 are executed, and step S55 following step S20 is executed. In step S67 following step S55, the unit control unit 12 causes the operation display unit 6 to display an upper limit notification screen 50 (FIG. 22) including upper limit notification information, and proceeds to step S21. The upper limit notification screen 50 (FIG. 22) will be described later.

[0176] FIG. 22 is a diagram showing the configuration of the upper limit notification screen 50 displayed in step S67. The upper limit notification screen 50 includes upper limit notification information, which is information indicating that there is an upper limit on the number of non-recyclable media. In the example shown in FIG. 22, an example of the upper limit notification information is displayed as "The following banknotes can be handled at one time in total: XX pieces," which includes the limit number of non-recyclable banknotes, "XX pieces." The type of non-recyclable banknote (combination of denomination and year of issue) is also displayed. When the customer presses the confirmation button 51, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S21.

[0177] Fig. 23 is a diagram showing the configuration of the removal guidance screen 60 displayed in step S61. The removal guidance screen 60 includes removal guidance information, which is information that urges the customer not to insert non-recycling banknotes into the deposit / withdrawal unit 20. In the example shown in Fig. 22, an example of the removal guidance information displayed is "Please remove the above banknotes from the banknotes to be inserted." When the customer presses the confirmation button 61, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S1.

[0178] FIG. 24 is a diagram showing the configuration of the movement guidance screen 70 displayed in step S66. The movement guidance screen 70 includes movement guidance information, which is information that prompts the customer to move to a predetermined location. In the example shown in FIG. 24, an example of the movement guidance information is displayed as "Please bring your banknotes to the counter," and the predetermined location "counter" is included. When the customer presses the confirmation button 71, the unit control unit 12 proceeds to step S21.

[0179] (3-3. Effects of the Third Embodiment) As described above, the third embodiment of the present invention can achieve the same effects as the first embodiment of the present invention. Furthermore, in the third embodiment of the present invention, the unit control unit 12 controls the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 to display to the customer the reason why the banknotes have been returned. This reduces the possibility that the customer will repeatedly perform deposit transactions, and also reduces the possibility that the customer will occupy the automated teller machine 1 for a long period of time.

[0180] The third embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0181] (4. Various Modifications) Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to these examples. It is clear that a person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains can conceive of various modifications and alterations within the scope of the technical ideas set forth in the claims, and it is understood that these also naturally fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0182] (4-1. Modifications regarding counting the number of consecutive sheets) In the first embodiment described above, the number of consecutive non-handled banknotes is set to 1 the first time a banknote is determined to be an unhandled banknote after a deposit transaction has begun, and thereafter the number of consecutive non-handled banknotes is counted each time a banknote is consecutively determined to be an unhandled banknote. However, once the consecutive determinations following the first non-handled banknote are broken, the number of consecutive non-handled banknotes is finalized, and thereafter the number of consecutive non-handled banknotes is not counted no matter how many consecutive non-handled banknotes are found.

[0183] However, if the continuous determination continuing from the first detected non-compliant banknote is broken, the number of continuous non-compliant banknotes may be reset to 0, and if another non-compliant banknote is found, the number of continuous non-compliant banknotes may be counted again. Similarly, if the continuous determination continuing from the first detected non-compliant banknote is broken, the number of continuous non-compliant banknotes may be reset to 0, and if another non-compliant banknote is found, the number of continuous non-compliant banknotes may be counted again.

[0184] (4-2. Modifications regarding validation of subsequent banknotes after a banknote that has been rejected for deposit) Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, when a banknote is found that is rejected for deposit, this banknote and the two following banknotes, a total of three banknotes, are returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20 regardless of the validation result of the validation unit 21. However, if the next banknote after the rejected banknote is determined to be a normal banknote by the validation unit 21, it may be transported to the temporary holding unit 22 for storage instead of being returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0185] In the first embodiment, it is assumed that immediately before a deposit-rejected banknote is stopped, two subsequent banknotes pass through the validation unit 21 at a transport speed slower than the normal transport speed. In this case, there is a possibility that these two banknotes (especially the third banknote) will not be properly validated, so not only the deposit-rejected banknote but also the two subsequent banknotes are returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit 20.

[0186] However, if it can be assumed that the banknote following the deposit-rejected banknote has already passed through the validation unit 21 when the conveyance speed is reduced, the banknote following the deposit-rejected banknote is more likely to have been properly validated. Therefore, if the validation unit 21 determines that the banknote following the deposit-rejected banknote is a normal banknote, it may be conveyed to and stored in the temporary holding unit 22 rather than being returned to the deposit-withdrawal unit 20. In this case, of the two banknotes following the deposit-rejected banknote, only the latter banknote will be returned to the deposit-withdrawal unit 20 together with the deposit-rejected banknote, regardless of the validation result of the validation unit 21.

[0187] In the first embodiment, the two banknotes following a banknote rejected for deposit may not be properly validated, and therefore are excluded from the counting of the consecutive number of banknotes rejected for deposit, the total number of banknotes rejected for deposit, and the consecutive number of banknotes not eligible for handling. However, if there is a high possibility that the next banknote following a banknote rejected for deposit has been properly validated, it may be included in the counting of the consecutive number of banknotes rejected for deposit, the total number of banknotes rejected for deposit, and the consecutive number of banknotes not eligible for handling, and similarly, it may be included in the counting of the total number of banknotes not eligible for deposit, the total number of banknotes rejected for authenticity, the total number of banknotes rejected for running, and the total number of banknotes rejected for fitness.

[0188] (4-3. Modifications regarding limit number setting) Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, all of the following are set: the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the total limit on the number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the consecutive limit on the number of banknotes that cannot be handled, and the limit on the number of banknotes that cannot be recycled for each denomination. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is also possible to set only any of these limit numbers.

[0189] For example, a setting screen (not shown) may have input fields for inputting the numerical values ​​for the consecutive limit number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the total limit number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit, the consecutive limit number of banknotes that cannot be handled, and the limit number of banknotes that cannot be recycled for each type of banknote, as well as check boxes for setting or not setting each limit number, and only the limit number for which the check box is checked may be set.

[0190] Furthermore, if at least a limit on the total number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit is not set, a situation may arise in which the retry operation continues to be repeated, so it may be possible to make it impossible to disable the limit on the total number of banknotes that can be rejected for deposit.

[0191] (4-4. Modifications regarding banknotes stored in the transport section) Furthermore, in each of the above-described embodiments, the present invention has been described as being applied to an automated teller machine 1 that has a deposit / withdrawal section 20 that also serves as a reject stacking section, and a discrimination section 21, and that temporarily holds a deposited rejected banknote and two subsequent banknotes in the transport section 26, and then returns these three held banknotes to the deposit / withdrawal section 20 and separates them again.

[0192] However, each embodiment may also be applied to an automated teller machine configured to have a deposit / withdrawal unit that also serves as a reject stacking unit, and a discrimination unit, and to temporarily hold at least deposited-rejected banknotes in the transport unit, and then return the held banknotes to the deposit / withdrawal unit and separate them again. For example, each embodiment may be applied to an automated teller machine configured to temporarily hold only deposited-rejected banknotes in the transport unit, or to an automated teller machine configured to temporarily hold deposited-rejected banknotes and three or more subsequent banknotes in the transport unit.

[0193] (4-5. Modifications regarding banknote deposit and withdrawal machines) Furthermore, in each of the above-described embodiments, the banknote deposit and dispensing machine 11 has been described as an example of a medium handling device that handles media. However, the banknote deposit and dispensing machine 11 may be replaced with a medium handling device other than the banknote deposit and dispensing machine 11. For example, the banknote deposit and dispensing machine 11 may be any of various cash handling machines. The cash handling machine may be a change machine that dispenses change, or may be a sales proceeds management device installed in the back yard of a supermarket or the like.

[0194] (4-6. First modified example regarding operation when condition is satisfied) In the second embodiment described above, when it is determined that both the non-recycling banknote quantity condition and the same customer condition are satisfied, the unit control unit 12 stops the feeding of banknotes by the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 and controls the transport of a predetermined number of banknotes to the deposit cassette 24E based on the determination that a predetermined number of banknotes inserted into the depositing / withdrawing unit 20 and validated by the validation unit 21 in the current deposit transaction are non-recycling banknotes. In this example, a predetermined number of non-recycling banknotes are permitted to be transported to the deposit cassette 24E in the current deposit transaction. The predetermined number may be, for example, one.

[0195] However, the unit control unit 12 may not allow non-recycling banknotes to be transported to the deposit cassette 24E in the current deposit transaction. That is, the unit control unit 12 may terminate the current deposit transaction if it determines that both the non-recycling banknote quantity condition and the same customer condition are met. Also, the customer may be able to select in advance whether to allow a predetermined number of non-recycling banknotes to be transported to the deposit cassette 24E. Alternatively, the customer may be able to select in advance the predetermined number.

[0196] (4-7. Second modified example regarding operation when condition is satisfied) In the third embodiment described above, the unit control unit 12 has been described as causing the operation and display unit 6 to display the upper limit notification screen 50 (FIG. 22) when it determines that the condition for the number of non-recyclable banknotes is met. However, when it determines that the condition for the number of non-recyclable banknotes is met, the unit control unit 12 may also cause the operation and display unit 6 to display that deposits can be made into other automated teller machines. For example, if an automated teller machine can accommodate multiple deposit cassettes, the possibility that the deposit cassettes will quickly become full is low. Therefore, the other automated teller machine may be an automated teller machine that can accommodate multiple deposit cassettes. Furthermore, the unit control unit 12 may display a map with a mark indicating the location of the other automated teller machine.

[0197] Furthermore, the unit control unit 12 may store in a server (not shown) the identification information (for example, a face image or card information) of a customer who satisfies the condition for the number of banknotes not eligible for recycling at the automated teller machine 1. If the identification information of a customer who performs a deposit transaction is stored in the server and matches the identification information of the customer who performs the deposit transaction, the unit control unit 12 may prevent the customer from performing the deposit transaction, regardless of which automated teller machine connected to the server via a network the customer performs the deposit transaction at. [Explanation of symbols]

[0198] 1. Automatic teller machine 2a Camera 2b Speaker 6 Operation display section 11. Banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 12 Unit control section 20 Deposit and Withdrawal Department 21 Identification Department 22 Temporary Holding Department 24A~24D Recycled Cassette 24E deposit cassette

Claims

1. a receiving unit that receives a medium and dispenses the medium; a discrimination unit that discriminates the medium fed by the reception unit; a control unit that counts the number of non-recyclable media determined to be non-recyclable based on the discrimination result obtained by the discrimination unit in the first deposit transaction, and stops the feeding of media by the acceptance unit and controls the transport of the non-recyclable media to a predetermined cassette when the number of non-recyclable media reaches a predetermined upper limit; A media handling device comprising:

2. When the number of the non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the upper limit number and when the first customer who performed the first deposit transaction is the same as the second customer who performs a second deposit transaction following the first deposit transaction, the control unit stops the feeding of media by the reception unit and controls the transport of the predetermined number of media to the predetermined cassette based on the determination that a predetermined number of media inserted into the reception unit and identified by the identification unit in the second deposit transaction are non-recyclable.

2. The media handling device of claim 1.

3. The predetermined number is less than the upper limit number.

3. The media handling device according to claim 2.

4. When the number of the non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the upper limit number and when the first customer and the second customer are the same, the control unit controls the reception unit to display information urging the customer not to insert the non-recyclable media in the second deposit transaction.

3. The media handling device according to claim 2.

5. When the number of the non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the upper limit number and when the first customer and the second customer are the same, the control unit controls the display of information encouraging the media to be moved to a predetermined location based on the determination that the media inserted into the reception unit and discriminated by the discrimination unit in the second deposit transaction are non-recyclable.

3. The media handling device according to claim 2.

6. the control unit determines whether the first customer and the second customer are the same based on the identification information of the first customer and the identification information of the second customer.

3. The media handling device according to claim 2.

7. the identification information of the first customer is a facial image of the first customer captured by a camera during the first deposit transaction; the identification information of the second customer is a facial image of the second customer captured by the camera during the second deposit transaction; 7. The media handling device according to claim 6.

8. the identification information of the first customer is card information read from a card inserted by the first customer in the first deposit transaction; the second customer's identification information is card information read from a card inserted by the second customer in the second deposit transaction; 7. The media handling device according to claim 6.

9. The control unit controls the display unit to display information indicating that there is an upper limit on the number of the non-recycling media when the number of the non-recycling media reaches the upper limit.

2. The media handling device of claim 1.

10. the control unit terminates the second deposit transaction when the number of the non-recyclable media in the first deposit transaction reaches the upper limit number and when the first customer who conducted the first deposit transaction is the same as the second customer who will conduct a second deposit transaction following the first deposit transaction.

2. The media handling device of claim 1.

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