Banknote storage device and cash processing device

Abstract

To improve convenience.SOLUTION: A banknote bundle storage unit 10 stores a plurality of banknote bundles WB in an upright position and lined up along an approximately horizontal direction and along a storage direction. A storage unit 20 is provided to store the banknote bundles WB so that positions of end faces of the adjacent banknote bundles WB differ from each other in a direction that intersects the storage direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a banknote storage device and a cash processing device, and is suitable for use in a storage facility that stores a banknote bundle in which a plurality of banknotes are bound together with a band. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, cash processing devices that are installed in financial institutions such as banks and handle banknotes have become widespread. Some of these cash processing devices have a banknote bundle storage that stores a banknote bundle in an upright position, in which multiple banknotes are bundled together with a band (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This banknote bundle storage stores the banknote bundles in a drawer that can be pulled out from a housing, with the banknotes oriented with their longitudinal directions horizontal and the front and back faces of adjacent banknote bundles facing each other. When the banknote bundle storage is replenished with banknote bundles from the outside, the drawer is pulled out from the housing, and the banknote bundles are loaded into the drawer while aligning the heights and positions of the upper end faces of the banknote bundles from the back side to the front side, for example. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5409420 (Figure 2) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in some cases, the height (length in the short direction) of banknotes in circulation is not different for each denomination, and therefore, even if the denominations are different, the height (length in the short direction) is the same. In some countries, not only the height (length in the short direction) but also the width (length in the long direction) are the same. For this reason, even if a banknote bundle of a different denomination other than the one to be loaded is stored, the user can only see the end face of the banknote bundle, and therefore, for example, depending on the degree of dirt on the end face, the denomination cannot be identified from the color of the end face, and there is a risk that the user will not notice that the wrong banknote bundle has been loaded. In addition, even if the user notices that a banknote bundle of a different denomination has been loaded, it is difficult to distinguish the denomination from the appearance only from the end face of the banknote bundle, and it is necessary to check each loaded banknote bundle, which takes a lot of time.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to propose a banknote storage device and a cash processing device that can improve convenience. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve such problems, the banknote storage device of the present invention is a banknote storage device that stores a plurality of banknote bundles in an upright state so that they are aligned substantially horizontally and in a storage direction, Adjacent The positions of the ends of the bill bundles cross the storage direction. top and bottom A storage section that stores bill bundles in different directions The storage unit has a receiving portion on which the lower end surface of the bill bundle is placed, and a partition portion that stands upright from the receiving portion in a substantially vertical direction and partitions the bill bundle in an upright state along the substantially vertical direction, and has a partition plate in which a bill bundle storage space is formed to store the bill bundles one by one, and the receiving portions of the partition plate have different heights between adjacent receiving portions. I did so.

[0007] In the bill storage device of the present invention, a plurality of bill bundles are arranged in an upright position, substantially horizontally, and in the storage direction. Adjacent to each other Store in a row R A banknote storage device, A storage unit for storing a stack of bills, The storage unit includes a receiving unit on which the lower end surface of the bill bundle is placed, and a partition unit that stands upright from the receiving unit at an incline with respect to the vertical direction and partitions the bill bundle in an upright position at an incline with respect to the vertical direction. When the bill bundles are placed on each of the receiving sections, the bill bundles are arranged in an upright position inclined with respect to the vertical direction, with the paper faces of the bill bundles facing each other and adjacent to each other, and between adjacent bill bundles with facing paper faces, the positions of the upper and lower end faces of the bill bundles differ in a direction intersecting the storage direction when viewed from the storage direction, and when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the paper faces of the bill bundles, a part of the front surface of the paper face of the bill bundle on the rear side is exposed without being blocked by the bill bundle on the front side. I did so.

[0008] The cash processing device of the present invention is further provided with the above-mentioned bill storage device.

[0009] As a result, the present invention can form a step between the end faces of adjacent bill bundles, thereby exposing at least a portion of the front or back surface of each bill bundle and making it easier to view. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a banknote storage device and a cash processing device that can improve convenience. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a cash processing device. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a banknote bundle storage vault according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a storage unit according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a partition plate. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a banknote bundle. [Figure 7] 11 is a front view showing the configuration of the storage section in a normal loading state. FIG. [Figure 8] 13 is a front view showing the configuration of the storage unit in a misloaded state. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration (1) of a storage unit according to a second embodiment. [Figure 10] 11A, 11B, and 11C show a configuration (2) of a storage unit according to a second embodiment, in which (A) is a plan view, (B) is a left side view, and (C) is a front view. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the configuration (1) of a storage unit according to a third embodiment. [Figure 12] 13A, 13B, and 13C show a configuration (2) of a storage unit according to a third embodiment, in which (A) is a plan view, (B) is a left side view, and (C) is a front view. [Figure 13] 13A, 13B, and 13C are diagrams showing the configuration of a storage unit according to a fourth embodiment, in which FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the configuration (1) of a banknote bundle storage according to another embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 13 is a left side view showing the configuration (2) of a banknote bundle storage according to another embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] 1. First embodiment [1-1. Configuration of cash processing device] As shown in Fig. 1, a cash processing device 1 according to the first embodiment is made up of a banknote processing device 2 and a banknote bundle storage vault 10. This cash processing device 1 is installed, for example, in a staff-side space in a branch of a financial institution such as a bank, and is a device that processes banknotes, and is handled by a staff member (hereinafter also referred to as a user). The banknote processing device 2 has a control unit (not shown). This control unit reads and executes a predetermined program from a ROM (Read Only Memory), a storage unit (not shown), etc., using a CPU (Central Processing Unit), thereby controlling various processes related to banknotes and controlling the banknote bundle storage vault 10. As shown in Fig. 1, the control unit of the banknote processing device 2 controls the banknote bundle storage vault 10 via a wire, but it may also control it wirelessly instead of wired. Also, as shown in Fig. 1, the banknote processing device 2 is arranged on the rear side of the banknote bundle storage vault 10 when viewed from the left-right direction, but for example, it may be arranged on the front side, or the banknote processing device 2 may be arranged on the lower side of the banknote bundle storage vault 10 when viewed from the top-bottom direction.

[0014] [1-2. Composition of banknote bundle] Here, as shown in FIG. 6, the bill bundle WB according to the present embodiment is a bundle of bills BL of a single denomination, which are stacked in a predetermined number (for example, 100 bills) and bundled by a bundling ST. The width of this bundling ST is 20 [mm] along the longitudinal direction of the bill bundle WB, and the position of the end on one side of the longitudinal direction is set at a position 30 [mm] away from one end of the bill bundle WB toward the other end. For this reason, the center of the width along the longitudinal direction of the bill bundle WB of the bill bundle WB is set at a position 40 [mm] away from one end of the bill bundle WB toward the other end. In addition, in the longitudinal center of the bill bundle WB in this bundling ST, a printed section P is formed along the transverse direction of the bill bundle WB over a predetermined range in the transverse direction of the bill bundle WB. The printed section P indicates the date and time when the bill bundle WB was bundled by the bundling ST, the device number (not shown), and the like. This device number is printed, for example, on the side opposite to the date and time printing side.

[0015] This bill bundle WB has four bill bundle end faces EF that are end faces along the thickness direction, which are formed by overlapping the ends of multiple bills BL in the thickness direction of the bill bundle WB. The bill bundle WB also has a front side FS on which a portrait is printed on the bill BL, and a back side RS that is the opposite side of the front side FS in the bill bundle WB. In the following, a bill bundle in which 100 bills BL of 10,000 yen (i.e., 10,000 yen bills) are bundled together with a bundling ST is referred to as a bill bundle WBa. A bill bundle in which 100 bills BL of 1,000 yen (i.e., 1,000 yen bills) are bundled together with a bundling ST is referred to as a bill bundle WBb (FIG. 8). In addition, in the case of bills circulating in Japan, the length in the short direction is almost the same for all denominations. Furthermore, when the banknote BL is in an upright position with its longitudinal direction aligned horizontally, a denomination printing section PK indicating the denomination of the banknote BL is provided in the upper left and upper right parts as viewed from the front side FS.

[0016] The banknote bundle WBa and the banknote bundle WBb are significantly different in the design of the pattern, characters, color, etc. of the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WBa and the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WBb. Therefore, a user can distinguish the banknote bundle WBa and the banknote bundle WBb at a glance by comparing the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WBa and the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WBb. However, the banknote bundle WBa and the banknote bundle WBb do not have patterns or characters on the banknote bundle end surface EF of each other, and only have slightly different colors. In addition, when the banknote bundle WB is created from a banknote BL that has once been in circulation, the banknote bundle end surface EF of the banknote bundle WB may be dirty. Therefore, a user may not be able to distinguish the banknote bundle WBa and the banknote bundle WBb at a glance by simply comparing the banknote bundle end surface EF of the banknote bundle WBa and the banknote bundle end surface EF of the banknote bundle WBb.

[0017] Furthermore, particularly when a banknote bundle WB is created from banknotes BL that have already been in circulation, parts of the banknote bundle WB other than the parts bound by the strapping ST may be deformed, such as bulging, due to the tendencies of the banknotes BL.

[0018] [1-3. Configuration of the banknote stack storage facility] As shown in Fig. 2, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 according to the first embodiment is mainly composed of a housing 12 and a drawer 14. In the following, as shown in Fig. 2, for example, the side of the banknote bundle storage vault 10 that a user faces is defined as the front side, the opposite side as the rear side, the left and right sides as seen from a user facing the front side are defined as the left side and the right side, respectively, and an upper side and a lower side are further defined, but the front side as the side that a user faces shown in Fig. 2 is not limited to this example.

[0019] The bill bundle storage 10 houses a drawer 14 inside a housing 12. The housing 12 is configured as a hollow rectangular parallelepiped with an opening on the left side. The drawer 14 stores the bill bundle WB in an upright position inside. The drawer 14 is a box-shaped opening at the top, consisting of a bottom (not shown) and a frame-shaped surrounding wall portion 16 extending upward from the outer edge of the bottom. The surrounding wall portion 16 is formed with a plate-shaped right side plate 16R, left side plate 16L, front side plate 16F, and rear side plate 16B, and a drawer internal space 16S is formed in the space surrounded by the right side plate 16R, left side plate 16L, front side plate 16F, and rear side plate 16B. The drawer 14 is configured to be reciprocated in the left-right direction relative to the housing 12 via slide rails 18 provided on the front side plate 16F and rear side plate 16B.

[0020] In the banknote bundle storage vault 10, for example, a maintenance worker may perform maintenance work by replenishing the drawer 14 with banknote bundles WB or removing the banknote bundles WB from the drawer 14. When the maintenance work is performed, the maintenance worker grasps the gripping portion 16H provided on the left side plate 16L and pulls the drawer 14 in the pull-out direction to the left as shown in FIG. 2, so that the inside of the drawer 14 becomes accessible. Hereinafter, this state is also referred to as the pulled-out state. On the other hand, when the maintenance work is completed and the maintenance worker pushes the drawer 14 in the push-in direction to the right, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 is placed in a state in which the drawer 14 is stored inside the housing 12. Hereinafter, this state is also referred to as the stored state.

[0021] Here, the maintenance worker moves the drawer 14 relative to the housing 12 in the left-right direction shown in FIG. 2 etc., thereby transitioning between the drawn-out state and the stored state.

[0022] [1-4. Drawer configuration] In the drawer internal space 16S of the drawer 14, storage units 20L and 20R (hereinafter collectively referred to as storage units 20), each set with a denomination to be stored, are arranged side by side in the left-right direction, with storage unit 20L on the left side and storage unit 20R on the right side. Storage unit 20L stores bill bundles WBa. Meanwhile, storage unit 20R stores bill bundles WBb. Since storage units 20L and 20R have substantially the same configuration, the following description will focus on storage unit 20L, and a description of storage unit 20R will be omitted.

[0023] [1-5. Storage section configuration] 3, the storage unit 20L is mainly composed of side walls 22 (side walls 22L and 22R), a back plate 24, and a partition plate 26. The storage unit 20L stores a plurality of bill bundles WBa in an upright state lined up along the storage direction, which is the front-to-rear direction. Therefore, in the pulled-out state, the maintenance worker visually checks the bill bundle WBa from the front side (front side) to the back side (rear side) with the front surface FS facing forward, i.e., toward the maintenance worker.

[0024] [1-5-1.Side wall configuration] The side wall 22 is composed of a side wall 22L arranged on the left side and a side wall 22R arranged on the right side. These side walls 22L and 22R are arranged symmetrically with respect to the center of the storage section 20L in the left-right direction. Hereinafter, the side walls 22L and 22R are collectively referred to as side walls 22. The side walls 22 are plate-like members that are thin in the left-right direction and extend along the front-rear direction, and are provided at both left and right ends of the storage section 20L, i.e., both ends in the longitudinal direction (left-right direction) of the back panel 24 and the partition panel 26.

[0025] The side wall 22 is composed of a vertical portion 22a and a guide portion 22b. The vertical portion 22a is a flat plate-shaped member extending along the vertical direction, and has a vertical height of, for example, about one-third of the short-side length of the bill bundle WBa, but is not limited to such an example.

[0026] The guide portion 22b is a flat plate-like member that is inclined from the upper end of the vertical portion 22a toward the outside in the left-right direction as it goes upward. In this manner, the side wall 22 is configured so that the opening width in the left-right direction is widened at the guide portion 22b. Therefore, since the side wall 22 is configured so that the opening width is widened when the banknote bundle WBa is loaded from above into the banknote bundle storage space 28 (described later), even if the banknote bundle WBa is misaligned in the longitudinal direction, for example, the banknote bundle WBa can be guided into the banknote bundle storage space 28 and easily stored therein while preventing the banknote bundle WBa from getting caught on the end of the side wall 22.

[0027] The side walls 22L and 22R are arranged to face each other in the left-right direction so that the left-right distance between the right side surface of the vertical part 22a of the side wall 22L and the left side surface of the vertical part 22a of the side wall 22R is slightly (for example, 1 [mm]) wider than the longitudinal length of the bill bundle WBa stored in the storage part 20L. The side walls 22 are arranged on the outer side in the left-right direction of the bill bundle WBa stored in the storage part 20L, and regulate the longitudinal position of the bill bundle WBa. The vertical part 22a also has a hole 22c penetrating from the right side surface to the left side surface, through which a side wall insertion protrusion 26a3 (described later) of the partition plate 26 is inserted.

[0028] In this way, the side walls 22 are spaced apart slightly wider than the longitudinal length of the bill bundle WB of the denomination set in the storage unit 20L / 20R in which the side walls 22 are arranged. Here, for example, when the spacing between the side walls 22 corresponds to a denomination with a small denomination (e.g., 1000 yen in the storage unit 20R), it is possible to prevent a bill bundle WBa of a large denomination (e.g., 10000 yen in the storage unit 20L) from being erroneously loaded into the storage unit 20R of a small denomination whose longitudinal length is shorter than that of the bill bundle WBa. Also, although a bill bundle WBb of a small denomination can be physically loaded into the storage unit 20L of a large denomination whose longitudinal length is longer than that of the bill bundle WBb, a large gap appears between the bill bundle WBb and the side walls 22. For this reason, the bill bundle storage 10 can easily make a maintenance worker realize that a wrong bill bundle WB has been loaded.

[0029] [1-5-2.Back panel configuration] As shown in FIG. 4, back panel 24 is a thin plate-like member extending in the up-down and left-right directions and having a cross section shaped like the capital letter "L", and is provided at the rear end of storage section 20L, i.e., between the rear ends of side walls 22L and 22R.

[0030] The back plate 24 is composed of a bottom receiving portion 24a and a back receiving portion 24b. The bottom receiving portion 24a is a flat member whose rear end portion is inclined downward by a predetermined inclination angle (e.g., 20°) of the banknote bundle inclination angle as it moves rearward from the horizontal direction. The length of the bottom receiving portion 24a in the front-rear direction is approximately the same as the thickness of the banknote bundle WBa, and the banknote bundle WBa is placed by abutting the lower banknote bundle end face EF of the banknote bundle WBa against its upper surface.

[0031] The back support 24b is a flat member that bends at a right angle to the bottom support 24a and extends upward from the rear end of the bottom support 24a. Therefore, the upper end of the back support 24b is inclined backward by the banknote bundle inclination angle with respect to the vertical direction. This banknote bundle inclination angle is at least an acute angle (less than 90°) with respect to the vertical direction. Therefore, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 does not incline the back plate 24 and the partition portion 26b (described later) of the partition plate 26 too much with respect to the vertical direction, thereby suppressing the size of the banknote bundle storage vault 10 in the front-to-rear direction. The front surface of the back support 24b abuts against the rear surface of the banknote bundle WBa placed on the back support 24b, thereby holding the banknote bundle WBa so that it does not fall backward. In addition, the back support portion 24b has a left-right length that is approximately the same as the longitudinal length of the banknote bundle WBa, and is capable of holding almost the entire back surface RS of the banknote bundle WBa, thereby preventing the banknote bundle WBa abutting the back support portion 24b from deforming during storage.

[0032] Furthermore, the back support 24b has a vertical height that is longer than the length of the short side of the bill bundle WBa, and is provided with a face value display unit 24c that displays the denomination (e.g., 10,000 yen) of the bill bundle WBa to be stored in the storage unit 20L at a location exposed above the stored bill bundle WBa. Therefore, the back support 24b allows a maintenance worker to recognize at a glance the denomination of the bill bundle WBa to be loaded into the storage unit 20L.

[0033] [1-5-3. Configuration of partition board] A plurality of partition plates 26 are arranged in a row in the storage direction (front-rear direction shown in FIG. 3) along the horizontal direction as a whole on the front side of the back plate 24. As shown in FIG. 5, the partition plate 26 is composed of a lower plate portion 26a and a partition portion 26b.

[0034] The lower plate portion 26a is a flat member that is thin in the up-down direction, extends in the left-right direction, and when installed on the side wall 22, the rear end portion is inclined downward by the banknote bundle inclination angle as it extends rearward from the horizontal direction. The lower plate portion 26a is composed of a banknote bundle receiving portion 26a1, a nesting portion 26a2, and a side wall insertion protrusion 26a3.

[0035] The banknote bundle receiving portion 26a1 is an area in front of the partition portion 26b on the lower plate portion 26a in the front-to-rear direction, and its length in the front-to-rear direction is approximately the same as the thickness of the banknote bundle WBa. The banknote bundle WBa is placed on the upper surface of the banknote bundle receiving portion 26a1 by abutting the lower banknote bundle end face EF of the banknote bundle WBa against the upper surface of the banknote bundle receiving portion 26a1.

[0036] The nesting portion 26a2 is an area on the rear side of the partition portion 26b in the lower plate portion 26a in the front-rear direction, has a length in the front-rear direction substantially equal to the thickness of the bill bundle WBa, and fits under the bill bundle receiving portion 26a1 of the adjacent rear partition plate 26. The nesting portion 26a2 of the rearmost partition plate 26 fits under the bottom receiving portion 24a of the back plate 24. This eliminates a gap in the front-rear direction below the bill bundle WBa in the storage unit 20L from the back plate 24 to the frontmost partition plate 26, preventing the bill bundle WBa from falling through the gap between the partition plates 26 adjacent in the front-rear direction.

[0037] The side wall insertion protrusion 26a3 is a rod-shaped member extending from a longitudinal end (left-right direction) of the lower plate portion 26a toward the outside in the left-right direction, and is inserted through the hole 22c in the side wall 22. The side wall insertion protrusion 26a3 is slidably inserted into the hole 22c in the side wall 22. Therefore, the side wall 22 is moved left-right relative to the partition plate 26 in accordance with the longitudinal length of the stored bill bundle WBa, thereby adjusting the distance between the side wall 22L and the side wall 22R. This makes it possible for the bill bundle storage vault 10 to configure storage units 20 of multiple denominations with the same parts within a left-right range in which the side wall insertion protrusion 26a3 does not come out of the hole 22c in the side wall 22.

[0038] The partition portion 26b is a flat member extending upward from the center of the lower plate portion 26a in the front-rear direction at a right angle to the lower plate portion 26a. Therefore, the upper end portion of the partition portion 26b is inclined backward by the banknote bundle inclination angle with respect to the vertical direction. The front surface of the partition portion 26b abuts against the rear surface of the banknote bundle WBa placed on the banknote bundle receiving portion 26a1 of the lower plate portion 26a, thereby holding the banknote bundle WBa so that it does not fall backward.

[0039] Furthermore, the partition plate 26 located furthest to the rear among the multiple partition plates 26 is disposed in front of the back plate 24 such that the partition portions 26b are spaced apart by a distance equivalent to one bundle of banknote bundles WBa with respect to the back plate 24. Furthermore, the partition plates 26 adjacent in the storage direction are disposed side by side in the storage direction such that the partition portions 26b adjacent to each other are spaced apart by a distance equivalent to one bundle of banknote bundles WBa. Therefore, the partition portions 26b form a banknote bundle storage space 28 between themselves and the back plate 24, and the banknote bundle storage space 28 is also formed in the space between the adjacent partition portions 26b and above the lower plate portion 26a. As a result, the storage section 20L separates the banknote bundles WBa into individual bundles for each banknote bundle storage space 28, aligns the longitudinal direction of the banknote bundles WBa with the horizontal direction of the lower plate portion 26a, and stores the banknote bundles WBa in an upright position with the banknote bundles WBa tilted backwards by the banknote bundle inclination angle so that the upper end is separated backwards from the maintenance worker facing the front of the banknote bundle storage vault 10.

[0040] Furthermore, the partition 26b has a mountain-shaped shape in which the upper end is substantially parallel to the horizontal direction of the lower plate 26a when viewed from the front, and the width in the left-right direction from the upper end to the lower end expands to about one-third of the longitudinal length of the partition plate 26. The left-right center of the partition 26b is set at a position about 40 mm to the right of the left-side bill bundle end face EF of the bill bundle WBa to be stored. The left-right length of the upper end of the partition 26b is about 20 mm, the same as the bundling ST of the bill bundle WBa. Therefore, when the bill bundle WBa is loaded from above into the bill bundle storage space 28, the upper end of the partition part 26b first comes into contact with the lower end of the strapping ST of the bill bundle WBa, and as the bill bundle WBa moves downward, the partition part 26b guides the bill bundle WBa so as to gradually suppress the bulging of the bill bundle WBa in the front-rear direction on the outer side of the strapping ST in the left-right direction of the bill bundle WBa. As a result, the partition part 26b guides the bill bundle WBa into the bill bundle storage space 28 while preventing the bill bundle WBa from getting caught by the partition part 26b by getting between the bills BL constituting the bill bundle WBa, and allows the bill bundle WBa to be easily stored without being affected by deformation such as bulging.

[0041] In addition, in the left-right center of the partition section 26b, two ribs 26b1 are formed that protrude forward from the front surface of the partition section 26b along the up-down direction at a distance that is wider in the left-right direction than the left-right width of the printed portion P of the strapping ST of the bill bundle WBa. Therefore, when the bill bundle WBa is loaded from above into the bill bundle storage space 28, the partition section 26b abuts the ribs 26b1 on the left-right outer side of the printed portion P of the strapping ST of the bill bundle WBa, thereby separating the printed portion P forward so as to float it from the front surface of the partition section 26b. As a result, when the bill bundle WBa is pushed into the bill bundle storage space 28, the partition section 26b can prevent the printed portion P from being rubbed by the partition section 26b, and can make the printed portion P less likely to be soiled.

[0042] [1-5-4. Sensor configuration] As shown in Fig. 7, a pair of bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R are provided on the left side surface of the vertical portion 22a of the side wall 22L and the right side surface of the vertical portion 22a of the side wall 22R, respectively, facing each other in the left-right direction. Hereinafter, the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R are collectively referred to as the bundle set detection sensors 30. The bundle set detection sensors 30 are provided for all the banknote bundle storage spaces 28. Note that the bundle set detection sensors 30 are not shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

[0043] The bundle set detection sensor 30 is a so-called microswitch, and has a plate-shaped detection lever portion that protrudes beyond the side wall 22 to the banknote bundle storage space 28 side, and the detection result by the detection portion can be confirmed by the control portion of the banknote processing device 2. The control portion determines whether or not the banknote bundle WB has been stored in the banknote bundle storage space 28 based on the obtained detection result.

[0044] Specifically, when the banknote bundle WBa is not loaded in the banknote bundle storage space 28, the banknote bundle WBa does not come into contact with the detection lever portions of both the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R, and both the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R detect the OFF state. When both the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R detect the OFF state, the control unit determines that the banknote bundle WBa is not loaded in the banknote bundle storage space 28.

[0045] On the other hand, when the banknote bundle WBa is properly loaded in the banknote bundle storage space 28, the banknote bundle WBa comes into contact with the detection units of both the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R as shown in Fig. 7, and both the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R detect the ON state. When both the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R detect the ON state, the control unit determines that the banknote bundle WBa, which is the banknote bundle WB of the correct size to be loaded in the storage unit 20L, has been properly loaded in the banknote bundle storage space 28.

[0046] 8, when a bill bundle WBb, which is a bill bundle WB smaller than the bill bundle WBa, is mistakenly loaded normally into the bill bundle storage space 28, the bill bundle WBb may come into contact with only one of the detection portions of the bundle set detection sensor 30L or 30R. In that case, one of the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R detects the ON state, and the other detects the OFF state. If one of the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R detects an ON state and the other detects an OFF state, i.e., if the detection results of the bundle set detection sensor 30L and the bundle set detection sensor 30R do not match, the control unit detects that a banknote bundle WBb, which is smaller than the banknote bundle WBa of the correct size that should be loaded in the storage unit 20L, has been mistakenly loaded into the banknote bundle storage space 28, and notifies a maintenance worker via a display unit and / or audio output unit (not shown) in the banknote processing device 2 that a setting error has occurred due to the incorrect banknote bundle WB being loaded.

[0047] [1-6. Loading of bill bundles] In this configuration, when loading the banknote bundle WB into the banknote bundle storage vault 10, a maintenance worker moves the drawer 14 leftward relative to the housing 12 while facing the front of the banknote bundle storage vault 10, thereby putting the drawer 14 into a pulled-out state. Next, the maintenance worker checks the face value display unit 24c, and loads the banknote bundle WB sequentially from the banknote bundle storage space 28 on the rear side closer to the back panel 24 toward the banknote bundle storage space 28 on the front side. The control unit detects the bundle set state by the bundle set detection sensors 30L and 30R provided in the banknote bundle storage space 28 in which the banknote bundle WB has been loaded.

[0048] [1-7. Effects, etc.] In the above configuration, the banknote bundle storage 10 stores the rectangular parallelepiped banknote bundles WB in an upright position with the upper end inclined backward by the banknote bundle inclination angle with respect to the vertical direction while arranging the banknote bundles WB in the horizontal direction as a whole in the storage direction. Thus, the banknote bundle storage 10 can position the rear end of the upper banknote bundle end face EF of each banknote bundle WB lower than the front end of the upper banknote bundle end face EF of the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the rear side of the banknote bundle WB. This can also be said that a virtual line extending backward along the upper banknote bundle end face EF of each banknote bundle WB passes through the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the rear side of the banknote bundle WB. In other words, for example, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, the banknote bundle storage 10 stores the banknote bundles W such that a relative positional deviation occurs between the banknote bundles WB moving forward and backward in the storage direction when viewed from the front. For this reason, although the upper end portions of the multiple banknote bundles WBa lined up along the storage direction are aligned horizontally as a whole and the height of the storage position is constant, the upper banknote bundle end faces EF are not aligned horizontally, and between adjacent banknote bundles WB, steps are formed in the upper banknote bundle end faces EF, forming a stepped shape.

[0049] Therefore, the banknote bundle storage 10 can expose the vicinity of the upper end portion of the front surface FS of each banknote bundle WB above the rear end portion of the upper banknote bundle end face EF of the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the front side of the banknote bundle WB. This allows the banknote bundle storage 10, in the drawn-out state, to easily visually check a portion of the front surface FS of each banknote bundle WB facing the front side of the drawer 14. Furthermore, when loading the banknote bundle WB, the banknote bundle storage 10 allows the maintenance worker to visually check the upper end portion of the front surface FS of the loaded banknote bundle WB when the banknote bundle WB is loaded sequentially from the banknote bundle storage space 28 on the back side close to the back panel 24 to the banknote bundle storage space 28 on the front side. Thus, when, for example, a banknote bundle WBb is mistakenly loaded into the storage unit 20L, the banknote bundle storage 10 allows a maintenance worker to recognize at a glance that the color of the front surface FS is clearly different from that of the banknote bundle WBa, and allows the maintenance worker to easily realize that the denomination of the banknote bundle WB to be loaded is incorrect. Furthermore, because of this, when a maintenance worker realizes that a banknote bundle WB of a different denomination has been loaded, the banknote bundle storage 10 can avoid forcing the maintenance worker to carry out the cumbersome task of checking the loaded banknote bundles WB one by one.

[0050] Meanwhile, conventional clamp-type banknote bundle storage vaults do not have partition plates separating each individual banknote bundle, but instead store multiple banknote bundles by lining up the banknote bundles in an upright position along the storage direction and clamping the banknote bundles between the back plate and a clamp member biased toward the back plate.

[0051] In this type of banknote bundle storage, when loading banknote bundles, the drawer is put in the pulled-out state, a maintenance worker holds the clamp member by hand and retracts it away from the back plate, arranging the banknote bundles to leave a space in which the banknote bundles can be loaded, and clamps the banknote bundles with the clamp member while holding the loaded banknote bundles with their hands to prevent them from falling over. On the other hand, when removing banknote bundles from this type of banknote bundle storage, the drawer is put in the pulled-out state, a maintenance worker holds the clamp member by hand and retracts it away from the back plate, removes the required number of banknote bundles, and clamps the remaining banknote bundles with the clamp member while holding the banknote bundles with their hands to prevent them from falling over.

[0052] However, when attempting to load or remove a bill bundle while holding down the clamp member with one hand, the maintenance worker's hands are occupied and the drawer moves, making it difficult to load or remove the bill bundle. Also, if the clamp member is made lockable to prevent it from moving in a retracted state in order to avoid this, the clamp member will retract too far when there are only a few bill bundles stored, creating a gap between the clamp member and the stored bill bundle, causing the bill bundle to fall over and making it difficult to operate.

[0053] In response to this, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 has a partition portion 26b of a partition plate 26 with an upper end portion inclined backward from the vertical direction by the banknote bundle inclination angle provided upright between adjacent banknote bundles WB, and stores the banknote bundles WB in an upright position leaning against the partition portion 26b. As a result, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 can store the banknote bundles WB without causing them to fall over, while omitting a clamp member that biases the banknote bundles WB toward the back plate 24. This eliminates the need for a maintenance worker to hold a clamp member when loading or unloading the banknote bundles WB, improving workability.

[0054] On the other hand, it is also possible to store the banknote bundles in an upright position by omitting the clamp member and providing a partition section of a partition plate between adjacent banknote bundles, the partition section having an upper end section that runs horizontally from one end side to the other end side of the longitudinal direction of the banknote bundle. However, in the case of such a banknote bundle storage, the parts of the banknote bundle other than the banding spread in the front-rear direction and get caught on the partition section, making it difficult to load the banknotes, and the banknotes may be torn if they are forced into the storage.

[0055] In response to this, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 has the partition 26b aligned with the strapping ST of the banknote bundle WB in the left-right direction and shaped like a mountain so that the width in the left-right direction increases from the upper end to the lower end. As a result, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 can gradually suppress the bulge in the front-rear direction of the banknote bundle WB from the strapping ST toward the outside in the left-right direction when the banknote bundle WB is loaded. This prevents the banknote bundle storage vault 10 from causing the parts of the banknote bundle WB other than the strapping ST to expand in the front-rear direction and get caught on the partition 26b, prevents damage to the banknotes BL, and allows maintenance workers to easily load the banknote bundle WB.

[0056] According to the above configuration, the banknote bundle storage 10 stores a plurality of banknote bundles WB in an upright state aligned substantially horizontally and aligned along the front-to-rear direction as the storage direction, and is provided with a storage section 20 that stores the banknote bundles WB in an upright state inclined with respect to the vertical direction. Therefore, the banknote bundle storage 10 forms a step between the banknote bundle end faces EF of adjacent banknote bundles WB, exposing a portion of the front face FS of each banknote bundle WB, making it possible to easily view the front face FS.

[0057] 2. Second embodiment [2-1. Configuration of cash processing device] As shown in FIG. 1, a cash processing device 101 according to the second embodiment differs from the cash processing device 1 according to the first embodiment in that it has a banknote bundle storage vault 110 instead of the banknote bundle storage vault 10, but is otherwise configured in the same manner.

[0058] [2-2. Configuration of the banknote stack storage facility] As shown in FIG. 1, the banknote bundle storage vault 110 according to the second embodiment differs from the banknote bundle storage vault 10 according to the first embodiment in that it has a storage unit 120 instead of storage unit 20, but is otherwise configured in the same manner.

[0059] [2-3. Storage section configuration] 9 and 10, the storage section 120 according to the second embodiment is mainly composed of side walls (not shown) and a partition plate 34. A plurality of partition plates 34 are arranged in a line along the storage direction, which is the front-rear direction. The partition plate 34 is a plate-like member that extends in the left-right direction and has a cross section shaped like the capital letter "L", and is composed of a bottom receiving portion 34a and a partition portion 34b.

[0060] The bottom receiving portion 34a is a flat member that is thin in the up-down direction, extends in the left-right direction, and is aligned in the horizontal direction. The length of the bottom receiving portion 34a in the front-rear direction is approximately the same as the thickness of the bill bundle WB, and the bill bundle WB is placed on the bottom receiving portion 34a by abutting the lower end face of the bill bundle WB against the upper surface of the bottom receiving portion 34a.

[0061] The partition 34b is a flat member extending upward from the rear end of the bottom receiving portion 34a at a right angle to the bottom receiving portion 34a. Therefore, the partition 34b is aligned in the vertical direction. The partition 34b is not limited to a configuration extending upward at a right angle to the bottom receiving portion 34a, and may extend upward at a substantially right angle to the bottom receiving portion 34a. This also applies to the following embodiments. The partition 34b holds the bill bundle WB so that it does not fall backward by abutting its front surface against the rear surface of the bill bundle WB placed on the bottom receiving portion 34a. The partition 34b holds the bill bundle WB so that it does not fall forward by abutting its rear surface against the front surface of the bill bundle WB placed on the bottom receiving portion 34a of the partition plate 34 adjacent to the rear side of the partition plate 34 on which the partition 34b is provided. Further, a front end surface receiving portion 35 is provided vertically from the front end of the bottom surface receiving portion 34a of the foremost partition plate 34, and by abutting against the front surface of the bill bundle WB placed on the bottom surface receiving portion 34a of the partition plate 34, the front end surface receiving portion 35 holds the bill bundle WB so that it does not fall forward. The front end surface receiving portion 35 is not limited to being provided vertically, and may be provided vertically in a substantially vertical manner. This also applies to the following embodiments. Therefore, the partition portions 34b form bill bundle storage spaces 28 between adjacent partition portions 34b, and the bill bundle WB is stored with its longitudinal direction aligned horizontally in a state where the bill bundle WB is partitioned into bill bundle storage spaces 28 one by one.

[0062] In the storage section 120, the partition plates 34 are arranged in a line in the front-to-rear direction such that the positions of the bottom receiving portions 34a of the respective partition plates 34 gradually increase in height from the partition plate 34 located at the foremost position to the partition plate 34 located at the rearmost position. Therefore, the multiple partition plates 34 are configured in a staircase shape ascending from the front side to the rear side.

[0063] Furthermore, the step height HSP, which is the length of the step caused by the bottom receiving portions 34a of the partition plates 34 adjacent in the front-rear direction, is approximately equal to the denomination printed portion height HPK, which is the vertical length from the upper end of the upright banknote BL to the lower end of the characters on which the denomination is printed in the denomination printed portion PK. Therefore, the storage unit 120 exposes the denomination printed portion PK of a given banknote bundle WB above the upper end of the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the front side of the banknote bundle WB, making it easier for a maintenance worker to recognize it.

[0064] In this way, the storage unit 120 stores the bill bundles WB in an upright position so as not to tilt relative to the vertical direction, and stores the bill bundles WB so that the height of the storage position increases in a stepped manner from the front bill bundle WB to the rear bill bundle WB. When this is seen with attention focused on a certain partition plate 34, the height of the storage position at which one partition plate 34 stores the bill bundle WB is higher than the storage position of the partition plate 34 adjacent to the front side of the partition plate 34 and lower than the storage position of the partition plate 34 adjacent to the rear side of the partition plate 34.

[0065] [2-4. Loading bill bundles] In this configuration, when loading the bill bundle WB into the bill bundle storage vault 110, a maintenance worker loads the bill bundle WB sequentially from the bill bundle storage space 28 on the rear side toward the bill bundle storage space 28 on the front side.

[0066] [2-5. Effects, etc.] In the above configuration, the banknote bundle storage 110 stores the banknote bundles WB in an upright vertical position such that the height of the storage position increases stepwise from the front banknote bundle WB to the rear banknote bundle WB. That is, the banknote bundle storage 110 stores the banknote bundles WB such that the positions of the end faces of adjacent banknote bundles WB are different in a direction intersecting the storage direction. Thus, the banknote bundle storage 110 can position the upper banknote bundle end face EF of each banknote bundle WB lower than the front end of the upper banknote bundle end face EF of the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the rear side of the banknote bundle WB. Therefore, the upper banknote bundle end faces EF of the multiple banknote bundles WB lined up along the storage direction are not the same height, but have a stepped shape in which steps are formed in the upper banknote bundle end faces EF between the adjacent banknote bundles WB so that the height increases stepwise toward the rear. In other words, between the adjacent bill bundles WB, a step is formed on the upper bill bundle end face EF so that the height decreases stepwise toward the front, forming a stepped shape.

[0067] Therefore, the banknote bundle storage 110 can expose the denomination printed part PK or the pattern, which is at least a part of the front surface FS of each banknote bundle WB, above the rear end of the upper banknote bundle end face EF of the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the front side of the banknote bundle WB. That is, the banknote bundle storage 110 stores the banknote bundle WB so that at least a part of the front surface of the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the rear side of the banknote bundle WB is exposed through the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the front side. This allows the banknote bundle storage 110, in the pulled-out state, to easily allow a maintenance worker facing the front side of the banknote bundle storage 110 to visually check a part of the front surface FS of each banknote bundle WB. Furthermore, when the banknote bundle WB is loaded, the banknote bundle storage 110 allows the maintenance worker to visually check the upper end of the front surface FS of the loaded banknote bundle WB when the banknote bundle WB is loaded sequentially from the banknote bundle storage space 28 on the rear side to the banknote bundle storage space 28 on the front side. Thus, when a bill bundle WBb of a denomination (e.g., 1,000 yen) different from the bill bundle WBa of a denomination to be stored (e.g., 10,000 yen) is mistakenly loaded into the storage section 120 of the bill bundle storage vault 110, the colour of the surface FS is different from that of the bill bundle WBa, resulting in at least a slight difference in colour, and also improving the likelihood that a maintenance worker will be able to see that the number displayed on the denomination printing section PK is 1000 and not 10,000.

[0068] In addition, the cash processing device 101 according to the second embodiment can achieve the same effects as those of the cash processing device 1 according to the first embodiment.

[0069] 3. Third embodiment [3-1. Configuration of cash processing device] As shown in FIG. 1, a cash processing device 201 according to the third embodiment differs from the cash processing device 101 according to the second embodiment in that it has a banknote bundle storage vault 210 instead of the banknote bundle storage vault 110, but is otherwise configured in the same manner.

[0070] [3-2. Configuration of the banknote stack storage facility] As shown in FIG. 1, the banknote bundle storage vault 210 according to the third embodiment differs from the banknote bundle storage vault 110 according to the second embodiment in that it has a storage section 220 instead of the storage section 120, but is otherwise configured in the same manner.

[0071] [3-3. Storage section configuration] As shown in Figures 11 and 12, in which the same symbols are used for parts corresponding to those in Figures 9 and 10, the storage section 220 of the third embodiment differs from the storage section 120 of the second embodiment in that it has a partition plate 234 instead of the partition plate 34, and a back plate 40 and a push plate 42 have been added, but is otherwise configured in the same way.

[0072] The partition plate 234 is divided into a partition plate 234L arranged on the left side and a partition plate 234R arranged on the right side, sandwiching a push plate passing portion 234a arranged in the center in the left-right direction. Hereinafter, the partition plate 234L and the partition plate 234R are collectively referred to as the partition plate 234. Therefore, the partition plate 234 has a push plate passing portion 234a, which is a space slightly wider than the left-right width of the push plate 42, formed in the center in the left-right direction. As a result, the partition plate 234L and the partition plate 234R are arranged to be retracted from the movement path of the push plate 42 in the storage direction. This push plate passing portion 234a allows the push plate 42 to move between the rearmost partition plate 234 and the front side of the frontmost partition plate 234.

[0073] The back plate 40 is a rectangular parallelepiped member extending vertically, has a width in the left-right direction substantially equal to that of the push plate 42, and is disposed in the center of the bank-note bundle WB in the left-right direction. The front surface of the back plate 40 is substantially flush with the front surface of the partition portion 34b of the rearmost partition plate 234, and by abutting against the rear surface of the bank-note bundle WB placed on the rearmost partition plate 234, the back plate 40 holds the bank-note bundle WB so that it does not fall backward.

[0074] The push plate 42 is a rectangular parallelepiped member that is provided opposite the back plate 40 in the front-rear direction and extends vertically, and has a width in the left-right direction that is slightly narrower than the width in the left-right direction of the push plate passing portion 234a. The push plate 42 is also disposed in the center in the left-right direction of the bill bundle WB. The push plate 42 is configured to be able to move the push plate passing portion 234a in the front-rear direction between the rearmost partition plate 234 and the front side of the frontmost partition plate 234. The push plate 42 pinches the stored bill bundle WB between the back plate 40 and holds it so that it does not fall over by abutting its rear surface against the front side of the bill bundle WB stored in the partition plate 234.

[0075] [3-4. Sensor configuration] A pair of a light emitting unit 44e and a light receiving unit 44r are provided on the rear side of the press plate 42 and the front side of the back plate 40 so as to face each other in the front-rear direction. The light emitting unit 44e and the light receiving unit 44r constitute a bundle set detection sensor 44. The light emitting unit 44e has a plurality of light emitting elements arranged in the vertical direction mounted on a board and is attached to the press plate 42. The light receiving unit 44r has a plurality of light receiving elements arranged in the vertical direction mounted on a board and is attached to the back plate 40. The bundle set detection sensor 44 is provided with the light emitting unit and the light receiving element so that the detection light passes slightly above the bottom receiving portion 34a of each of all the banknote bundle storage spaces 28.

[0076] The bundle set detection sensor 44 is an optical sensor that emits detection light from a light-emitting unit 44e and transmits a detection result indicating whether the detection light has been received by a light-receiving unit 44r to a control unit of the banknote processing device 2. The control unit determines whether the banknote bundle WB has been stored in the banknote bundle storage space 28 based on the obtained detection result.

[0077] Specifically, when the banknote bundle WB is not loaded in the banknote bundle storage space 28, the bundle set detection sensor 44 detects the bright state because the banknote bundle WB does not block the detection light of the bundle set detection sensor 44. When the bundle set detection sensor 44 detects the bright state, the control unit determines that the banknote bundle WB is not loaded in the banknote bundle storage space 28 through which the detection light of the bundle set detection sensor 44 passes.

[0078] On the other hand, when the banknote bundle WB is loaded into the banknote bundle storage space 28, the bundle set detection sensor 44 detects a dark state because the banknote bundle WB blocks the detection light of the bundle set detection sensor 44. When the bundle set detection sensor 44 detects a dark state, the control unit determines that the banknote bundle WB is loaded into the banknote bundle storage space 28 through which the detection light of the bundle set detection sensor 44 passes.

[0079] The control unit also determines how many bill bundles WB are currently loaded by detecting up to which light-emitting element from the top the detection light is blocked by the bill bundle WB.

[0080] [3-5. Loading bill bundles] In this configuration, when loading the banknote bundle WB into the banknote bundle storage 210, the maintenance worker moves the push plate 42 away from the back plate 40 toward the front, and loads the banknote bundle WB sequentially from the back banknote bundle storage space 28 toward the front banknote bundle storage space 28. After loading the banknote bundle WB, the maintenance worker moves the push plate 42 toward the back so as to approach the back plate 40, and presses it against the banknote bundle WB to sandwich the banknote bundle WB between the back plate 40 and the push plate 42. At this time, based on the control of the control unit, the bundle set detection sensor 44 emits detection light from the light emitting unit 44e and notifies the control unit of the detection result.

[0081] [3-6. Effects, etc.] In the above configuration, the banknote bundle storage 210 divides the partition plate 234 into partition plates 234L and 234R with the press plate passing section 234a in between, the press plate 42 is configured to be movable along the storage direction at the press plate passing section 234a, and the loaded banknote bundle WB is sandwiched between the press plate 42 and the back plate 40 to hold it so that it does not fall over. Therefore, the banknote bundle storage 210 can hold the banknote bundle WB in an upright position more stably than if the press plate 42 and back plate 40 were not present.

[0082] The banknote bundle storage 210 is also provided with a bundle set detection sensor 44 that detects the presence or absence of the banknote bundle WB in each banknote bundle storage space 28. This allows the banknote bundle storage 210 to detect the number of stored banknote bundles WB. The banknote bundle storage 210 can also detect the number of stored banknote bundles WB not only in the pulled-out state of the drawer 14, but also in a storage state in which the banknote bundles WB cannot be visually observed from outside the housing 12, by utilizing a configuration in which the storage positions of the banknote bundles WB differ in a stepped manner.

[0083] Furthermore, in the banknote bundle storage 210, the push plate 42 and the light-emitting unit 44e of the bundle-set detection sensor 44 are integrally configured, and the back plate 40 and the light-receiving unit 44r of the bundle-set detection sensor 44 are integrally configured. Therefore, the banknote bundle storage 210 can be simplified in configuration compared to a case in which the push plate 42 and the light-emitting unit 44e of the bundle-set detection sensor 44 are separate bodies and the back plate 40 and the light-receiving unit 44r of the bundle-set detection sensor 44 are separate bodies.

[0084] In addition, the cash processing device 201 according to the third embodiment can achieve the same effects as those of the cash processing device 101 according to the second embodiment.

[0085] [4. Fourth embodiment] [4-1. Configuration of cash processing device] As shown in FIG. 1, a cash processing device 301 according to the fourth embodiment differs from the cash processing device 201 according to the third embodiment in that it has a banknote bundle storage vault 310 instead of the banknote bundle storage vault 210, but is otherwise configured in the same manner.

[0086] [4-2. Configuration of the banknote stack storage facility] As shown in FIG. 1, the banknote bundle storage vault 310 according to the fourth embodiment differs from the banknote bundle storage vault 210 according to the third embodiment in that it has a storage section 320 instead of the storage section 220, but is otherwise configured in the same manner.

[0087] [4-3. Storage Section Configuration] As shown in Figure 13, in which the same symbols are used for parts corresponding to those in Figure 12, the storage section 320 of the fourth embodiment differs from the storage section 220 of the third embodiment in that it has the addition of a partition plate 334 instead of partition plate 234, a back plate 340 (back plates 340L and 340R) instead of back plate 40, and a push plate 342 (push plates 342L and 342R) instead of push plate 42, but is otherwise configured in the same way.

[0088] The partition plate 334 is disposed between the push plate passing portions 334aL and 334aR disposed at both ends in the left-right direction. The push plate passing portions 334aL and 334aR are spaces slightly wider than the left-right widths of the push plates 342L and 342R, respectively. The push plate passing portions 334aL and 334aR allow the push plate 342 to move between the rearmost partition plate 334 and the portion in front of the frontmost partition plate 334.

[0089] The back plates 340L and 340R are members similar to the back plate 40, have approximately the same left-right width as the push plates 342L and 342R, and are disposed at both left-right ends of the bill bundle WB. The front faces of the back plates 340L and 340R are approximately flush with the front face of the partition portion 34b of the rearmost partition plate 334, and by abutting against the rear face of the bill bundle WB placed on the rearmost partition plate 334, the bill bundle WB is held so as not to fall backward.

[0090] The push plates 342L and 342R are provided opposite the back plate 340 in the front-rear direction, are members similar to the push plate 42, and have a width in the left-right direction slightly narrower than the width in the left-right direction of the push plate passing parts 334aL and 334aR. The push plates 342L and 342R are arranged at both ends in the left-right direction of the bill bundle WB. The push plates 342L and 342R are configured to be able to move the push plate passing parts 334aL and 334aR in the front-rear direction between the rearmost partition plate 334 and the front side of the frontmost partition plate 334. The push plates 342L and 342R hold the bill bundle WB sandwiched between the back plates 340L and 340R so that it does not fall over by abutting the rear surface of the bill bundle WB stored in the partition plate 334 at the front side.

[0091] [4-4. Sensor configuration] The press plate 342L and the back plate 340L are provided with a pair of light emitting unit 44e and light receiving unit 44r, similar to the press plate 42 and the back plate 40, facing each other in the front-rear direction. The light emitting unit 44e and the light receiving unit 44r constitute a bundle set detection sensor 344L. On the other hand, the press plate 342R and the back plate 340R are provided with a pair of light emitting unit 44e and light receiving unit 44r, similar to the press plate 42 and the back plate 40, facing each other in the front-rear direction. The light emitting unit 44e and the light receiving unit 44r constitute a bundle set detection sensor 344R. Hereinafter, the bundle set detection sensors 344L and 344R are collectively referred to as the bundle set detection sensor 344.

[0092] Here, as shown in FIG. 13C, a case will be considered in which, for example, the right side of the bill bundle WB is not pushed into a specific partition plate 334 (hereinafter also referred to as a target partition plate) all the way up to the bottom receiving portion 34a of the partition plate 334 and floats up. In this case, the detection light emitted from the light emitting portion 44e of the push plate 342L to the target partition plate is blocked by the bill bundle WB, while the detection light emitted from the light emitting portion 44e of the push plate 342R to the target partition plate is not blocked by the bill bundle WB. Therefore, the bundle set detection sensor 344L detects a dark state at the target partition plate, while the bundle set detection sensor 344R detects a light state at the target partition plate. In this way, the bill bundle WB may block only the detection light of either the bundle set detection sensor 344L or 344R at the same partition plate 334. In this case, one of the bundle set detection sensors 344L and 344R detects a light state in the target partition plate, and the other detects a dark state in the target partition plate. When one of the bundle set detection sensors 344L and 344R detects a light state and the other detects a dark state, that is, when the detection results of the bundle set detection sensor 344L and the bundle set detection sensor 344R do not match in one banknote bundle storage space 28, the control unit detects that a setting error has occurred in which the banknote bundle WB is loaded in the storage unit 320 in a state where either the left or right end of the lower banknote bundle end face EF is lifted from the bottom receiving portion 34a of the partition plate 334, and outputs a notification of a possible setting error to a maintenance worker via a display unit or a voice output unit (not shown) in the banknote processing device 2, or a notification to confirm whether the banknote bundle WB is a correct banknote bundle.

[0093] [4-5. Loading bill bundles] In this configuration, when loading a banknote bundle WB into the banknote bundle storage vault 310, a maintenance worker performs substantially the same operations as in the case of the banknote bundle storage vault 210. At this time, based on the control of the control unit, the bundle set detection sensor 344 emits detection light from the light emitting unit 44e. The light receiving unit 44r outputs a light receiving result of the detection light to the bundle set detection sensor 344, and the bundle set detection sensor 344 notifies the control unit of the detection result based on the light receiving result.

[0094] [4-6. Effects, etc.] In the above configuration, the banknote bundle storage 310 is provided with pressure plate passing sections 334aL and 334aR at both left and right ends of the partition plate 334, the pressure plates 342L and 342R are configured to be movable along the storage direction at the pressure plate passing sections 334aL and 334aR, and the loaded banknote bundle WB is sandwiched between the pressure plates 342L and 342R and the back plates 340L and 340R to hold it so that it does not fall over. Therefore, compared to the banknote bundle storage 210, the banknote bundle storage 310 can sandwich both longitudinal ends of the banknote bundle WB and can hold the banknote bundle WB in an upright state more stably.

[0095] Furthermore, the banknote bundle storage 310 is provided with bundle set detection sensors 344 at both longitudinal ends of the banknote bundle WB, which detect the presence or absence of the banknote bundle WB in each banknote bundle storage space 28. This allows the banknote bundle storage 310 to detect that the banknote bundle WB has been loaded in a state in which either longitudinal end of the lower banknote bundle end face EF has lifted off the bottom receiving portion 34a of the partition plate 334. This allows the cash processing device 301 to urge the maintenance worker to correctly reload the banknote bundle WB.

[0096] In addition, the cash processing device 301 according to the fourth embodiment can achieve the same effects as the cash processing device 201 according to the third embodiment.

[0097] 5. Other embodiments In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the inclination angle of the banknote bundle WB with respect to the vertical direction is set to 20°. The present invention is not limited to this, and the inclination angle of the banknote bundle WB with respect to the vertical direction may be set to various other angles. Note that, the larger the inclination angle with respect to the vertical direction, the easier it is for the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB to be exposed forward, while the smaller the inclination angle with respect to the vertical direction, the smaller the size of the banknote bundle storage 10 in the front-to-rear direction can be.

[0098] In the above-mentioned second embodiment, the case has been described where the banknote bundles WB are stored so that the height increases in a stepped manner from the front banknote bundle WB to the rear banknote bundle WB. The present invention is not limited to this, and the height of the storage position of all the banknote bundles WB may be constant, and the banknote bundles WB may be stored so that the position is shifted in stages to the right or left from the front banknote bundle WB to the rear banknote bundle WB. Furthermore, when the frontmost banknote bundle WB is referred to as the frontmost banknote bundle, the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the rear of the frontmost banknote bundle is referred to as the second banknote bundle, and the banknote bundle WB adjacent to the rear of the second banknote bundle is referred to as the third banknote bundle, the second banknote bundle is arranged shifted in one direction in the left-right direction, for example to the right, relative to the frontmost banknote bundle, and the third banknote bundle is arranged shifted in the other direction in the left-right direction, for example to the left, relative to the second banknote bundle.In other words, the banknote bundles WB may be stored so that the left-side banknote bundle end face EF of the multiple banknote bundles WB is alternately concave and convex in the left-right direction along the storage direction, and the right-side banknote bundle end face EF is alternately concave and convex in the left-right direction along the storage direction. In this case, the maintenance worker can visually check the right end of the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB that is misaligned to the right with respect to the front banknote bundle WB, and can visually check the left end of the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB that is misaligned to the left with respect to the front banknote bundle WB. The same applies to the third and fourth embodiments.

[0099] As in the second embodiment described above, the method of storing the bill bundles WB so that the height increases in a stepped manner from the front bill bundle WB to the rear bill bundle WB may be combined with the method of not shifting the storage position in the left-right direction. The same applies to the third and fourth embodiments.

[0100] The height of the banknote bundle storage 110 may be reduced by storing the banknote bundles WB such that the upper banknote bundle end faces EF of the multiple banknote bundles WB are alternately convex and concave in the up-down direction along the front-rear direction. In that case, the banknote bundle WB that is shifted downward with respect to the front banknote bundle WB may be shifted to the right or left with respect to the front banknote bundle WB so that the front surface FS is exposed forward. The same applies to the third and fourth embodiments.

[0101] In the second embodiment described above, the banknote bundles WB may be stored so that the front banknote bundle is oriented upwards to the right, the second banknote bundle is oriented upwards to the left, and the third banknote bundle is oriented upwards to the right, i.e., the left end of the upper banknote bundle end face EF of the multiple banknote bundles WB is alternately uneven in the vertical direction along the front-rear direction, and the right end of the upper banknote bundle end face EF is alternately uneven in the vertical direction along the front-rear direction. In this case, particularly in the case of banknotes BL circulating in Japan, the length in the short side direction is almost the same for all denominations, so that the denomination printing part PK provided in the upper left and upper right parts of the front surface FS of the banknote BL can be easily visually observed by a maintenance worker. The same applies to the third and fourth embodiments.

[0102] In the above-mentioned second embodiment, the bill bundle WB is stored in an upright state without being tilted with respect to the vertical direction. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the bill bundle WB may be stored in an upright state tilted with respect to the vertical direction, as in the first embodiment. The same applies to the third and fourth embodiments.

[0103] In the above-mentioned second embodiment, the step height HSP (FIG. 9) is substantially equal to the denomination printing part height HPK of the banknote bundle WB. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the step height HSP may be shorter than the denomination printing part height HPK of the banknote bundle WB. In that case, the height of the banknote bundle storage 110 can be suppressed. In that case, even if the entire denomination printing part PK cannot be exposed forward, at least a part of the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB can be exposed forward, so that even if a part of the denomination printing part PK is exposed, for example, the number of zeros (0) is different between 10,000 yen and 1,000 yen, and the like, it is possible for a maintenance worker to visually recognize the difference. Also, even if a part of the denomination printing part PK is exposed, for example, the color of the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB may be visually recognized by a maintenance worker. The same applies to the third and fourth embodiments.

[0104] In the above-mentioned third embodiment, the left-right width of the back plate 40 (FIGS. 11 and 12) is described as being approximately equal to the width of the push plate 42. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the left-right width of the back plate 40 may be approximately equal to the length of the banknote bundle WB in the longitudinal direction. The same applies to the fourth embodiment.

[0105] In the above-mentioned third embodiment, the press plate 42 (FIGS. 11 and 12) and the light emitting portion 44e of the bundle set detection sensor 44 are integrally configured, and the back plate 40 and the light receiving portion 44r of the bundle set detection sensor 44 are integrally configured. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the press plate 42 and the light emitting portion 44e of the bundle set detection sensor 44 may be configured separately, and the back plate 40 and the light receiving portion 44r of the bundle set detection sensor 44 may be configured separately. When the back plate 40 and the light receiving portion 44r are configured separately and the light receiving portion 44r is disposed on the rear side of the back plate 40, a hole through which the detection light passes may be drilled in the back plate 40, or the back plate 40 may be formed of a transparent member through which the detection light can pass. On the other hand, when the press plate 42 and the light emitting unit 44e are configured as separate bodies and the light emitting unit 44e is disposed in front of the press plate 42, a hole through which the detection light passes may be drilled in the press plate 42, or the press plate 42 may be made of a transparent material through which the detection light can pass. The same applies to the fourth embodiment.

[0106] In the above-mentioned third embodiment, a case has been described in which the bundle set detection sensor 44 (FIGS. 11 and 12), which is an optical sensor, detects the banknote bundle WB stored in the banknote bundle storage space 28. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the banknote bundle WB stored in the banknote bundle storage space 28 may be detected by various other types of sensors. The same is true in the fourth embodiment.

[0107] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, a case has been described in which a plurality of partition plates 26 (FIGS. 3 and 5) are arranged side by side in the storage direction. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a plurality of partition plates 26 may be combined into one member (e.g., one bottom plate).

[0108] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the guide portion 22b is provided on both the left and right side walls 22 (FIG. 3). The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the guide portion 22b may be provided on only one side wall 22 to narrow the left-right width of the storage section 20. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0109] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the case where the distance between the vertical portion 22a of the side wall 22L (FIG. 3) and the vertical portion 22a of the side wall 22R is 1 mm wider than the length of the bill bundle WB in the longitudinal direction has been described. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the distance between the vertical portion 22a of the side wall 22L and the vertical portion 22a of the side wall 22R may be wider than the length of the bill bundle WB in the longitudinal direction by any other value. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0110] In the above-described first embodiment, a description has been given of a case in which the present invention is applied to a banknote bundle storage vault 10 provided with a bundle-set detection sensor 30. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the present invention may be applied to a banknote bundle storage vault 10 in which the bundle-set detection sensor 30 is omitted.

[0111] In the above-described first embodiment, a description has been given of a case in which the rib 26b1 is formed on the partition portion 26b of the partition plate 26. The present invention is not limited to this, and the rib 26b1 does not have to be formed on the partition portion 26b of the partition plate 26.

[0112] In the above-described first embodiment, the width of the lower end of the partition 26b is about one-third of the longitudinal length of the partition plate 26. The present invention is not limited to this, and the width of the lower end of the partition 26b may be made shorter or longer than about one-third of the longitudinal length of the partition plate 26. In addition, the width of the upper end and / or the lower end of the partition 26b may be made longer, for example, to be equal to the longitudinal length of the partition plate 26 or equal to the distance between the left and right side walls 22.

[0113] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to a banknote bundle storage 10 that stores a banknote bundle WB in which a plurality of banknotes BL are bundled together with a strap ST. The present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to, for example, a paper sheet bundle storage that stores a paper sheet bundle in which a plurality of paper leaf-shaped coupons, checks, films, etc. are bundled together. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0114] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to a banknote bundle storage 10 having two storage units 20L and 20R. The present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to a banknote bundle storage 10 having one or any number of storage units 20, such as three or more. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0115] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to a banknote bundle storage 10 having a storage unit 20L for storing a banknote bundle WBa and a storage unit 20R for storing a banknote bundle WBb. The present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention may be applied to a banknote bundle storage including a storage unit for storing a banknote bundle WB in which other denominations, such as 5,000 yen notes and 2,000 yen notes, are bundled together with a banding ST. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0116] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, a case has been described in which the present invention is applied to a banknote bundle storage vault 10 that stores banknote bundles WB aligned along a storage direction that is a front-rear direction perpendicular to a left-right direction that is a moving direction of the drawer 14 relative to the housing 12. The present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention may be applied to a banknote bundle storage vault 10 that stores banknote bundles WB aligned along a left-right direction that is a moving direction of the drawer 14 relative to the housing 12, with a maintenance worker facing the left side of the banknote bundle storage vault 10. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0117] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to a banknote bundle storage vault 10 that stores the banknote bundle WB in an upright position with the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB facing forward. The present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to a banknote bundle storage vault 10 that stores the banknote bundle WB in a state in which the front surface FS of the banknote bundle WB faces upward by rotating the banknote bundle storage vault 10 by 90° about an axis along the left-right direction. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0118] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, a case has been described in which the present invention is applied to a cash processing device 1 in which the banknote processing device 2 and the banknote bundle storage vault 10 are configured as separate entities. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the present invention may be applied to a cash processing device 1 in which the banknote bundle storage vault 10 is incorporated inside the banknote processing device 2. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0119] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, a case has been described in which the present invention is applied to the banknote bundle storage vault 10 installed together with the banknote processing device 2. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the present invention may be applied to a banknote bundle storage vault 10 installed independently. The same applies to the second to fourth embodiments.

[0120] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the banknote bundle storage vault 10 as the banknote storage device is configured by the storage unit 20 as the storage unit. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the banknote storage device may be configured by a storage unit having various other configurations.

[0121] As shown in FIG. 14, the bill bundle storage 410 has a plurality of partitions 434b fixed along the vertical direction. One bill bundle WB is stored between the partitions 434b. The bill bundle WB may have one denomination for each drawer 14, or may have a mixture of multiple denominations. The partitions 434b may be provided so that the distance between the partitions 434b is increased to store, for example, two or three bundles, or four or five bundles of bill bundles WB. The partitions 434b may be provided so that the direction in which the bill bundle WB is stored is the front-rear direction, as shown in FIG. 2. The upper end of the partition 434b in FIG. 14 is parallel to the bottom surface of the drawer 14, but may be oblique, for example, that is, one of the left and right ends of the partition 434b may be lowered. All or part of the configurations described in each of the above embodiments may be applied to the bill bundle storage 410 shown in FIG. 14. The configuration of the banknote bundle storage 410 shown in Fig. 14 improves the storage and / or removal of the banknote bundle WB. Conventionally, as shown in Fig. 2 of Japanese Patent No. 5409420, when removing a banknote bundle from a drawer, the user had to retract the clamping members that clamp the stored banknote bundle, remove the banknote bundle from the drawer, and then clamp the banknote bundle again with the clamping members while preventing the remaining stored banknote bundles from falling over.

[0122] In the second, third and fourth embodiments, the banknote bundle storage vaults 110, 210 and 310 are described with a step provided for each banknote bundle WB, but the present invention is not limited to such an example, and a step may be provided for each of a plurality of banknote bundles WB. For example, a step may be provided for each of three banknote bundles WB, as in a storage unit 520 shown in FIG. 15, in which the same reference numerals are used for members corresponding to those in FIG. 10(B). This storage unit 520 has a plurality of partition plates 534. The partition plate 534 has a bottom receiving portion 534a different from the bottom receiving portion 34a, as compared with the partition plate 34 (FIG. 10(B)). The length of the bottom receiving portion 534a in the front-rear direction is approximately the same as the thickness of three bundles of banknote bundles WB. In this case, the step is not limited to three bundles of banknote bundles WB, and a step may be provided for each of a plurality of bundles. At least one of the front end surface receiving portion 35, the press plate 42, and the bundle set detection sensor 44 shown in Fig. 11 etc. may be provided in the storage unit 520. With this configuration, the vertical length, which is the depth of the storage unit 520, can be made shorter than those of the storage units 120, 220, and 320 (Figs. 9 to 13).

[0123] The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment and other embodiments. That is, the scope of application of the present invention also extends to an embodiment in which the above-mentioned embodiment and the other embodiments are combined in part or in whole in any manner. The scope of application of the present invention also extends to a case in which a part of the configuration described in any of the above-mentioned embodiment and other embodiments is extracted and replaced or diverted with a part of the configuration of any of the above-mentioned embodiment and other embodiments, or a part of the extracted configuration is added to any of the embodiments. [Industrial Applicability]

[0124] The present invention can be used, for example, in a coin depositing and dispensing device that processes coins with users. [Explanation of symbols]

[0125] 1, 101, 201, 301...cash processing device, 2...banknote processing device, 10, 110, 210, 310, 410...banknote bundle storage, 12...casing, 14...drawer, 16... ... Surrounding wall, 16R...Right side plate, 16L...Left side plate, 16F...Front side plate, 16B...Rear side plate, 16S...Drawer interior space, 16H...Gripping part, 18...Slide rail, 20, 20L, 20R, 120, 220, 320, 520...storage section, 22L, 22R, 22...side wall, 22a...vertical section, 22b...guide section, 22c...hole section, 24...back plate, 24a...bottom receiving section, 24b...back receiving section, 24c...face value display section, 26...partition plate, 26a...lower plate section, 26a1...banknote stack receiving section, 26a2...nesting section, 26a3: side wall insertion protrusion, 26b: partition portion, 26b1: rib, 28: bill bundle storage space, 30: bundle set detection sensor, 34, 234L, 234R, 234, 334: partition plate, 234a, 334aL, 334aR: push plate passing portion, 34a: bottom surface receiving portion, 34b, 434b: partition portion, 35: front end surface receiving portion, 40, 340L, 34 0R...back plate, 42, 342L, 342R...push plate, 44, 344...bundle set detection sensor, 44e...light-emitting unit, 44r...light-receiving unit, HSP...step height, HPK...denomination printing unit height, WBa, WBb, WB...banknote stack, EF...banknote stack end face, FS...front, RS...back, BL...banknote, PK...denomination printing unit, ST...seal, P...printing unit.

Claims

1. A banknote storage device that stores a plurality of banknote bundles in an upright position, substantially horizontally, and adjacently arranged front to back along a storage direction, A storage unit for storing the banknote bundle, The storage unit includes: a receiving section on which a lower end surface of the bill bundle is placed, and a partition section which stands upright from the receiving section at an incline with respect to the vertical direction and partitions the bill bundle in an upright position at an incline with respect to the vertical direction, When the bill bundles are placed on the receiving sections, the bill bundles are arranged in an upright position inclined with respect to the vertical direction, with the paper surfaces of the bill bundles facing each other and adjacent to each other, In the banknote bundles in which the paper faces face each other and are adjacent to each other, When viewed from the storing direction, the positions of the upper and lower end faces of the bill bundle are different in a direction intersecting the storing direction, When viewed from a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of the bill bundle, a part of the front surface of the bill bundle behind the bill bundle adjacent to the front side is exposed without being blocked by the bill bundle adjacent to the front side. A banknote storage device characterized by the above.

2. The partition is inclined at an acute angle to the vertical direction.

2. The bill storage device according to claim 1,

3. A banknote storage device that stores a plurality of banknote bundles in an upright position so as to be aligned substantially horizontally and in a storage direction, A storage unit that stores the bill bundles such that the positions of the end faces of the adjacent bill bundles are different in a vertical direction intersecting the storing direction. Equipped with The storage unit includes: a partition plate having a receiving portion on which a lower end surface of the bill bundle is placed, and a partition portion standing upright from the receiving portion in a substantially vertical direction and partitioning the bill bundle in an upright state substantially along the vertical direction, and in which a bill bundle storage space is formed for storing the bill bundles one by one; The receiving portions of the partition plate are different in height from each other. A banknote storage device characterized by the above.

4. The partition plate is The bill bundles are arranged and stored such that the storage positions of the bill bundles become higher from the front side, which is one side of the storage direction, toward the rear side, which is the other side of the storage direction.

4. The bill storage device according to claim 3.

5. The storage unit includes: a back plate disposed behind the rearmost stored bill bundle; and a push plate movable along the storing direction, abutting against the frontmost stored bill bundle and holding the bill bundle between the back plate and the push plate. Further equipped with The push plate includes a sensor for detecting the bill bundle stored in each of the bill bundle storage spaces, The partition plate is disposed so as to be retracted from the moving path of the push plate.

5. The bill storage device according to claim 4.

6. The storage unit stores the bill bundle with the longitudinal direction of the bill bundle aligned horizontally, The push plate is provided at a central position in the longitudinal direction of the bill bundle to be stored.

6. The bill storage device according to claim 5,

7. The storage unit stores the bill bundle with the longitudinal direction of the bill bundle aligned horizontally, The push plates are provided at both ends of the bill bundle in the longitudinal direction.

6. The bill storage device according to claim 5,

8. A cash processing device comprising the banknote storage device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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