Coin identification device and currency handling device

Abstract

To enhance the accuracy in a case of detecting characteristics of a coin by a sensor.SOLUTION: When a coin CN is conveyed by a pin belt 44, a coin recognition part 23 of a coin deposit / withdraw part 12 urges the coin CN by a blade urging part 57 in the left direction so as to be brought into contact with a reference surface 42S. The coin recognition part 23 exerts a force toward a left front lower direction on the coin CN when a brush 58B of a brush urging part 58 is deflected, and advances the coin CN in a rear direction while maintaining a state in which the coin CN is in contact with the reference surface 42S and a guide surface 41S, thereby detecting information by each sensor of a magnetic information acquisition part 55. The coin recognition part 23 can thereby determine a material of a front surface of the coin CN, the entire material, and an outer diameter from the obtained information with high accuracy, and recognize the denomination, authenticity or the like of the coin CN with high accuracy.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a coin identifying device and a currency handling device, and is suitable for use in a cash register change system used at the cash registers of retail stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, in the field of cash register change systems, a combination of a change machine that processes the deposit and withdrawal of banknotes and coins and a POS register connected to a POS (Point Of Sales) system or the like is becoming more and more common. Among these change machines, the coin processing device that processes coins may have, for example, a coin deposit port that allows a cashier to deposit coins, a transport section that transports the coins along a transport path using a belt or the like, a recognition section that discriminates the type and authenticity of the inserted coins, a storage unit that stores coins by denomination, and a withdrawal port that accumulates coins dispensed from the storage unit and allows the cashier to take them out.

[0003] In some of these coin deposit and withdrawal units, the recognition unit detects various information from the coins using various sensors arranged along the conveying path while conveying the coins using the conveying belt of the conveying unit. In this recognition unit, it is possible to improve the accuracy in detecting the size (diameter) of the coin, for example, by abutting the peripheral side of the coin against a reference surface formed along the conveying path.

[0004] Therefore, as the recognition section of a coin processing device, it has been proposed to provide a width-shifting mechanism having, for example, a rotatable width-shifting arm and a width-shifting spring that biases the width-shifting arm against a reference surface, and to obtain a certain level of detection accuracy by pressing the transported coin against the reference surface (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-61463 A (Fig. 4, etc.) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In recent years, some countries and regions have issued bi-color clad coins, which use different types of metal in the center and the outer periphery, in order to prevent counterfeiting, etc. For this reason, it is considered that the recognition unit detects information about the bi-color clad coin using sensors corresponding to the center and outer periphery of the coin.

[0007] However, in the recognition unit using the above-mentioned shifting arm, when a coin is transported while being pressed against a reference surface by the shifting arm, there is a high possibility that its posture will become unstable during transport, making it difficult to maintain a constant detection accuracy in each sensor.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to propose a coin identifying device and a currency handling device that can improve the accuracy when detecting the characteristics of coins by a sensor. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to solve this problem, the coin discriminating device of the present invention includes a conveying guide that forms a conveying path along which coins are conveyed in a conveying direction and has a guide surface that guides the coins and a reference surface that regulates the movement range of the coin in a width direction perpendicular to the conveying direction on the guide surface, a sensor that detects information about the coin, a first biasing section that biases the coin in the width direction toward the reference surface, and a second biasing section that is provided downstream or upstream of the first biasing section in the conveying direction and biases the coin at least toward the reference surface. The second biasing section includes a flexible member having flexibility between one end and the other end, and a holding section that holds the other end of the flexible member that is located far from the guide surface, and the distance between the one end of the flexible member and the guide surface is smaller than the thickness of a minimum thickness coin, which is the smallest thickness of the coins. I did so.

[0010] The present invention also provides a currency handling device having a coin deposit port through which coins are deposited and a coin identification device that identifies coins, the coin identification device including a transport guide that forms a transport path along which coins are transported in a transport direction and has a guide surface that guides the coins and a reference surface that regulates the movement range of the coin in a width direction perpendicular to the transport direction on the guide surface, a sensor that detects information about the coin, a first urging section that urges the coin in the width direction toward the reference surface, and a second urging section that is provided downstream or upstream of the first urging section in the transport direction and urges the coin at least toward the reference surface. The second biasing section includes a flexible member having flexibility between one end and the other end, and a holding section that holds the other end of the flexible member that is located far from the guide surface, and the distance between the one end of the flexible member and the guide surface is smaller than the thickness of a minimum thickness coin, which is the smallest thickness of the coins. I did so.

[0011] In the present invention, the first biasing portion biases the coin toward the reference surface to bring it into contact with the reference surface, and the second biasing portion biases the coin toward the reference surface. At this time, the second biasing portion bends as the vicinity of one end of the flexible member comes into contact with the coin, and biases the coin against the guide surface by the action of a restoring force. The coin is placed on the reference surface. and guide surface With the coin kept in contact with the sensor, information can be detected from the coin with high accuracy. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a coin identification device and a currency handling device that can improve the accuracy when detecting the characteristics of coins using a sensor. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the overall configuration of a cash register change system. [Diagram 2] 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a coin depositing and dispensing unit. FIG. [Diagram 3] 3 is a schematic diagram showing the state of coins in a coin depositing and dispensing section; FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a conveying unit. [Diagram 5] 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a transport unit, a coin verification unit, a reject branch unit, and a reject transport path. [Figure 6] 4 is a schematic diagram showing the path of coins in the coin depositing and dispensing section. FIG. [Figure 7]2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a coin verification unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 8] 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a coin verification unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 9] 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a magnetic information acquisition unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of a coin according to the first embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of a coin according to the first embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the appearance of a coin according to the first embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of a coin according to the first embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the appearance of a coin according to the first embodiment. [Figure 15] 11 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a virtual first coin verification unit. FIG. [Figure 16] 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a virtual first coin verification unit. FIG. [Figure 17] 11 is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of a coin by a virtual first coin verification unit. FIG. [Figure 18] 13 is a schematic diagram showing the state of adhesion of foreign matter by the virtual first coin verification unit. FIG. [Figure 19] 13 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a virtual second coin verification unit. FIG. [Figure 20] 13 is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of a coin by a virtual second coin verification unit. FIG. [Figure 21] 13 is a schematic diagram showing forces acting on a coin in a virtual second coin verification unit. [Figure 22] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a coin verification unit according to a second embodiment. [Figure 23] 13 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a coin verification unit according to a second embodiment. FIG. [Figure 24] FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a coin according to a second embodiment. [Diagram 25]FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a coin according to a second embodiment. [Figure 26] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a coin verification unit according to another embodiment. [Figure 27] 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a conveyor belt unit according to another embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0015] 1. First embodiment [1-1. Configuration of the cash register change system] As shown in the external view in Fig. 1, the cash register change system 1 according to the first embodiment is made up of an upper POS register 2 and a lower change machine 3, which are independent devices. This cash register change system 1 is operated by a cashier at a checkout (a so-called cash register) in a retail store such as a supermarket or convenience store, when a customer pays for products that he or she wishes to purchase. In the following explanation, the front side facing the cashier and the opposite side are respectively defined as the front side and the back side, and left and right and top and bottom are further defined as viewed from the cashier.

[0016] The POS register 2 has a register control unit 5, a display operation unit 6, and a receipt processing unit 7. The register control unit 5 performs overall control. A barcode reader (not shown) is also connected to the POS register 2, and the barcode attached to a product is read by this barcode reader to identify the product.

[0017] The display operation unit 6 is composed of a display unit such as a liquid crystal display, and an operation unit such as a touch panel placed over the liquid crystal display. The display operation unit 6 displays the name and price of the recognized product on the liquid crystal display. The display operation unit 6 also displays input keys for numbers and the like on part of the display screen, and when a place on the touch panel corresponding to an input key is pressed, it accepts the input operation corresponding to the input key and sends it to the cash register control unit 5. In response, the cash register control unit 5 performs various processes such as increasing or decreasing the quantity of products and correcting the price. The receipt processing unit 7 prints the recognized product name, price, etc. on a receipt and discharges it from the receipt discharge port 7A.

[0018] Meanwhile, the change machine 3 is broadly composed of a change control unit 10, a banknote deposit / withdrawal unit 11 on the left side, a coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 on the right side, and a display / operation unit 13 on the upper front side. The change control unit 10 is mainly composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) not shown, and performs overall control of the change machine 3 by reading and executing various programs such as a change dispensing program from a memory such as a flash memory.

[0019] The banknote deposit / withdrawal unit 11 takes in banknotes deposited by a cashier through the banknote deposit / withdrawal port 14 and stores them in the banknote storage vault 15. The banknote deposit / withdrawal unit 11 also feeds banknotes from the banknote storage vault 15 as instructed by the cash register control unit 5, and dispenses them from the banknote deposit / withdrawal port 14 as change.

[0020] A coin deposit port 16 is provided at the top of the front surface of the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12, and a reject port 17 and a coin withdrawal port 18 are provided below it. The coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 takes in coins inserted into the coin deposit port 16 by a cashier and stores them in an internal storage 27 (FIG. 2). The coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 also dispenses, as change, from the coin withdrawal port 18, the denomination and number of coins according to the amount instructed by the cash register control unit 5.

[0021] The coins handled by the coin depositing and dispensing unit 12 are made of metals such as nickel, copper, aluminum, etc., or alloys of these metals, and are formed into thin plates with circular or polygonal surfaces. The coin depositing and dispensing unit 12 is also designed to handle so-called bicolor clad coins, whose center and outer periphery are made of different types of metal.

[0022] The display operation unit 13 is composed of a combination of a predetermined display panel and predetermined operation buttons. The display panel of the display operation unit 13 displays the operating status of the banknote deposit / withdrawal unit 11 and the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12, for example, displaying a shortage of coins for change in the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12, or an abnormality detected by a predetermined sensor, and the location of the abnormality, etc. The operation buttons of the display operation unit 13 are pressed by a cashier or the like to receive instructions regarding, for example, the transport of coins, etc.

[0023] [1-2. Configuration of coin deposit / withdrawal section] 2, the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 has, in addition to the coin deposit port 16, reject port 17, and coin withdrawal port 18 described above, a coin control unit 20, a deposit separation unit 21, a transport unit 22, a coin verification unit 23, a reject branch unit 24, and a reject transport path 25. The coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 also has six storage box branch units 26 (26A to 26F), six storage boxes 27 (27A to 27F), and six withdrawal adjustment units 28 (28A to 28F).

[0024] The coin control unit 20 is composed mainly of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) not shown, and provides overall control of the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 by reading and executing various programs, such as a coin deposit / withdrawal program, from a memory such as a flash memory.

[0025] The coin deposit port 16 is formed in a shape scooped out like a mortar, and is provided with a separation disk 16D, a separation gate 16G, an actuator (not shown), a sensor (not shown), etc. The separation disk 16D is formed in a disk shape, is incorporated into the bottom of the coin deposit port 16, and is configured to be rotatable around a rotation axis 16DX that extends in the up-down direction. The actuator supplies a driving force to the separation disk 16D under the control of the coin control unit 20. The sensor detects the presence or absence of coins in the coin deposit port 16, and notifies the coin control unit 20 of the obtained detection result.

[0026] The separation gate 16G is disposed near the outer periphery on the left rear side of the coin deposit port 16. The lower end portion of this separation gate 16G is formed substantially horizontally, and a gap is formed between the upper side of the separation disk 16D and the upper surface of the separation disk 16D. The width of this gap is larger than the thickness of one coin and smaller than the thickness of two coins stacked on top of each other.

[0027] When a coin CN is inserted, as shown in Fig. 3(A), the coin deposit port 16 detects this with a sensor, rotates the separation disk 16D under the control of the coin control unit 20, and moves the coin toward the outer periphery of the separation disk 16D by centrifugal force. As a result, the coin deposit port 16 separates the coins CN one by one through the gap between the separation disk 16D and the separation gate 16G and delivers them to the left rear side, as shown in Fig. 3(B).

[0028] The deposit / separation unit 21 (FIG. 2) is disposed behind the separation gate 16G, and is composed of a rotating shaft 21X aligned in the left-right direction, a cylindrical deposit / separation roller 21R inserted into the rotating shaft 21X, a sensor (not shown), an actuator (not shown), and the like. The rotating shaft 21X is rotatably supported, and rotates together with the deposit / separation roller 21R. The sensor detects the presence or absence of coins dispensed from the coin deposit port 16. Under the control of the coin control unit 20, the actuator supplies a driving force to the rotating shaft 21X to intermittently rotate the deposit / separation roller 21R.

[0029] When the deposit / separation unit 21 detects a coin by the sensor, it intermittently rotates the deposit / separation roller 21R under the control of the coin control unit 20, thereby sending each coin CN backward at regular intervals, as shown in FIG. 3(C).

[0030] The conveying section 22 (FIG. 2) is composed of a conveying guide section 31 that forms a coin conveying path, and a conveying belt section 32 that moves the coins along the conveying path on the conveying guide section 31. The conveying guide section 31 is also composed of a recognition conveying guide section 31A along the front-rear direction, and a sorting conveying guide section 31B along the left-right direction. In this conveying guide section 31, the rear end of the recognition conveying guide section 31A is connected to the left end of the sorting conveying guide section 31B.

[0031] The recognition and transport guide unit 31A is disposed behind the deposit separation unit 21, and has a guide unit 41, a left regulating unit 42L, and a right regulating unit 42R, as shown in the schematic cross-sectional view of Fig. 4. The distance between the left regulating unit 42L and the right regulating unit 42R in the left-right direction is larger than the diameter of the largest diameter coin (hereinafter referred to as the maximum diameter coin) that can be handled in the coin depositing and dispensing unit 12. The upper surface of the guide unit 41 (hereinafter referred to as the guide surface 41S) is formed in a substantially horizontal plane, and it is assumed that the coin is slid and advanced backward with the plate surface of the coin abutting against the guide surface 41S.

[0032] The left regulating portion 42L is disposed on the upper left side of the guiding portion 41 and regulates the leftward movement range of the coin on the guiding surface 41S. Hereinafter, the right side surface of the left regulating portion 42L is referred to as the reference surface 42S. The right regulating portion 42R is disposed on the upper right side of the guiding portion 41 and regulates the rightward movement range of the coin on the guiding surface 41S.

[0033] From another point of view, in the recognition transport guide unit 31A, a space is formed above the guide unit 41, surrounded by the guide surface 41S of the guide unit 41, the reference surface 42S of the left regulating unit 42L, and the left side surface of the right regulating unit 42R, and the coins are transported backward within this space. Hereinafter, this space is also referred to as the transport space 31S, and the path along which the coins advance is also referred to as the transport path.

[0034] The sorting transport guide section 31B (Figure 2) is configured as if the recognition transport guide section 31A was rotated approximately 90 degrees clockwise on a horizontal plane, with the guide section 41 and guide surface 41S extending in the left-right direction and a transport space 31S extending in the left-right direction being formed above them.

[0035] The conveyor belt unit 32 as a conveying unit is disposed above the conveyor guide unit 31, and is composed of four conveyor pulleys 43A, 43B, 43C, and 43D, and a pin belt 44. The conveyor pulleys 43A, 43B, 43C, and 43D are each formed in a cylindrical shape centered on an axis along the vertical direction, and are supported so as to be rotatable about this axis. The conveyor pulley 43A is connected to an actuator (not shown), and its rotation is controlled based on the control of the coin control unit 20.

[0036] Incidentally, the conveying pulley 43A is disposed near the front end of the recognition conveying guide section 31A. The conveying pulley 43B is disposed near the rear end of the recognition conveying guide section 31A and near the left end of the sorting conveying guide section 31B. The conveying pulley 43C is disposed near the right end of the sorting conveying guide section 31B. The conveying pulley 43D is disposed on the right front side of the conveying pulley 43B.

[0037] The pin belt 44 is composed of a flexible endless belt 45 and a plurality of pins 46 provided at predetermined intervals on the belt 45. The belt 45 is stretched along a path that goes around the transport pulleys 43A, 43B, and 43C and abuts against the transport pulley 43D. The belt 45 runs in the recognition transport guide section 31A, approximately halfway between the right side surface of the left regulating section 42L and the left side surface of the right regulating section 42R, that is, on the upper side near the center in the left-right direction of the transport space 31S. Incidentally, the lower end of the belt 45 forms a gap between the guide surface 41S that is sufficiently larger than the thickness of one coin.

[0038] The pin 46 is configured in a cylindrical shape with its central axis aligned in the up-down direction, and its upper end is located near the upper end of the belt 45, while its lower end protrudes below the lower end of the belt 45 and reaches the vicinity of the guide surface 41S. As shown in Fig. 4, the gap formed between the lower end of the pin 46 and the guide surface 41S is a very small gap that is sufficiently smaller than the thickness of one coin. In addition, the above-mentioned conveying pulley 43A is provided with a sensor that detects the position of the pin 46 and notifies the coin control unit 20.

[0039] With this configuration, the conveying unit 22 drives the actuator under the control of the coin control unit 20 to rotate the conveying pulley 43A of the conveying belt unit 32 clockwise in Fig. 2 and run the pin belt 44. The coin control unit 20 operates the deposit separation unit 21 in synchronization with the timing of the pins 46, thereby sending out each coin CN between the pins 46, as shown in Fig. 3(D).

[0040] As a result, in the recognition transport guide section 31A (FIG. 4), the transport section 22 can place a coin on the guide surface 41S, and while regulating the left-right movement range with the left regulating section 42L and the right regulating section 42R, can apply a rearward force to each coin with each pin 46, and transport the coin backward along the transport path. Also, in the sorting transport guide section 31B, the transport section 22 can place a coin on the guide surface 41S, and while regulating the left-right movement range with the left regulating section 42L and the right regulating section 42R, can apply a rightward force to each coin with each pin 46, and transport the coin rightward along the transport path.

[0041] The coin recognition unit 23 (FIG. 2) is located near the center of the recognition and conveyance guide unit 31A of the conveyance unit 22, and detects information about the coin using multiple sensors, recognizes the denomination and authenticity of the coin, or the degree of damage or defacement, etc. based on the obtained detection results, and notifies the obtained recognition results to the coin control unit 20 (described in detail later). In response, the coin control unit 20 determines the conveyance destination of the coin based on the notified recognition results.

[0042] The reject branching section 24 is disposed behind the coin recognition section 23, as shown in a schematic side view in Fig. 5, and is composed of a hole 24H, a branching plate 24V, an actuator (not shown), etc. The hole 24H is a rectangular hole that passes through the guide section 41 in the recognition and transport guide section 31A in the vertical direction, and the length of each side is slightly larger than the diameter of the coin. The branching plate 24V is a rectangular plate member that can close the hole 24H, and is supported near its rear end so as to be rotatable relative to the guide section 41 around an axis that runs in the left-right direction.

[0043] The actuator rotates the branch plate 24V by supplying a driving force to the branch plate 24V, and can transition between a closed state (shown by a solid line in FIG. 5) in which the branch plate 24V closes the hole 24H, and an open state (shown by a broken line in FIG. 5) in which the front end of the branch plate 24V is raised above the guide portion 41 (guide surface 41S) to open the hole 24H. Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 2, the branch plate 24V has a large cut-out portion formed in the vicinity of the center in the left-right direction over a range from the front end to the vicinity of the rear end, so that interference with the pin belt 44 can be avoided in the open state.

[0044] The reject conveying path 25 is a slope-shaped conveying path that gradually descends from the reject branching section 24 toward the reject opening 17, and when a coin falls from the reject branching section 24, gravity is used to slide the coin down and make it reach the reject opening 17.

[0045] For example, when the recognition result obtained from the coin recognition unit 23 indicates that a coin that has passed the coin recognition unit 23 is a coin that cannot be handled in the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 (hereinafter, referred to as a rejected coin), the coin control unit 20 determines that the coin is to be transported to the reject port 17 (FIGS. 1 and 2). At this time, the reject branching unit 24 transitions the branching plate 24V to an open state by the actuator based on the control of the coin control unit 20. As a result, the coin abuts against the lower surface of the branching plate 24V and falls downward from the hole 24H, and as shown by the coin CN and the arrow U1 in FIG. 6(A), it slides down along the reject conveying path 25 and advances forward, eventually reaching the reject port 17 and being taken out by the cashier.

[0046] On the other hand, when the recognition result obtained from the coin recognition unit 23 indicates that the coin that has passed the coin recognition unit 23 is of any denomination that can be handled by the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12, the coin control unit 20 determines that the destination of the coin is the storage vault 27 of that denomination (described in detail later). At this time, the reject branching unit 24 transitions the branching plate 24V to a closed state by the actuator based on the control of the coin control unit 20. As a result, the coin passes above the branching plate 24V at the reject branching unit 24, as shown by the coin CN and the arrow U2 in Fig. 6(B), is conveyed backward along the recognition conveying guide unit 31A by the conveying unit 22, and is further conveyed rightward along the sorting conveying guide unit 31B.

[0047] The six storage box branching sections 26 (26A to 26F) shown in Fig. 2 are arranged so as to be aligned in the left-right direction in the sorting transport guide section 31B. Each storage box branching section 26 is configured similarly to the reject branching section 24, and has a hole 26H provided in the guide section 41A in the sorting transport guide section 31B, a rotatable branching plate 26V, an actuator (not shown), and the like. Each storage box branching section 26 is assigned a different denomination (for example, 1 yen, 10 yen, 100 yen, 500 yen, 50 yen, and 5 yen).

[0048] The six storage boxes 27 (27A to 27F) are arranged adjacent to each other in the left-right direction. Each storage box 27 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape that is long in the front-rear direction, short in the left-right direction, and has a certain depth in the up-down direction, and is capable of storing coins therein. Each storage box 27, like each storage box branching section 26, is assigned a different denomination from the others.

[0049] The vicinity of the rear end of each storage vault 27 is located below the sorting transport guide section 31B, i.e., below each storage vault branch section 26. Therefore, when a coin falls from each storage vault branch section 26, the coin is stored in the storage vault 27 located below it. In addition, the front end of each storage vault 27 is adjacent to the rear side of the coin withdrawal port 18.

[0050] The coin control unit 20 appropriately opens and closes each storage vault branching unit 26 based on the denomination recognized by the coin recognition unit 23. As a result, the coin control unit 20 can transport the coin CN by the transport unit 22 along the sorting transport guide unit 31B, as shown by the coin CN and arrow U3 in Fig. 6(B), and drop the coin CN from the storage vault branching unit 26 corresponding to the denomination to store it in the storage vault 27.

[0051] The bottom of the storage 27 (FIG. 2) is inclined so that it becomes higher from the rear to the front, and a conveyor belt is built in. This conveyor belt is stretched so as to go around a plurality of conveyor pulleys (not shown), and when a driving force is supplied from an actuator (not shown), the conveyor belt is made to run, and the bottom part of the storage 27 can be advanced in the front-rear direction.

[0052] The six dispensing adjustment units 28 (28A to 28F) are disposed near the front end of each storage 27 (27A to 27F), and are composed of a rotating shaft 28X, a dispensing roller 28R, and an actuator and a sensor (not shown). The rotating shaft 28X is formed in a long and thin cylindrical shape along the left-right direction, and is disposed so as to penetrate the six storage 27, and is supported rotatably. Each dispensing roller 28R is formed in a cylindrical shape centered on an axis along the left-right direction, and is inserted into the rotating shaft 28X. The actuator supplies a driving force to the rotating shaft 28X to rotate it based on the control of the coin control unit 20. The sensor detects coins in front of the dispensing roller 28R, and notifies the coin control unit 20 of the obtained detection result.

[0053] When dispensing coins stored in storage 27 as change, the coin control unit 20 conveys the stored coins forward by running the conveyor belt to move the bottom portion forward. The coin control unit 20 also adjusts the number of coins dispensed from each storage 27 by appropriately rotating each dispensing roller 28R while monitoring the detection results obtained from each sensor in dispensing adjustment unit 28. As a result, the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 can feed the desired denomination and number of coins from storage 27 and store them in coin withdrawal port 18, and the cashier can take out these coins.

[0054] [1-3. Configuration of coin recognition unit] Next, the configuration of the coin verification unit 23 will be described in detail. As shown in a schematic plan view in Fig. 7 and a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line A1-A2 in Fig. 8, the coin verification unit 23 is disposed so as to be embedded in the middle of the verification and transport guide section 31A (Fig. 3). Specifically, the coin verification unit 23 includes a verification control section 50, a lower sensor frame 51, an upper left sensor frame 52, an upper right sensor frame 53, an optical information acquisition section 54, a magnetic information acquisition section 55, a blade biasing section 57, a brush biasing section 58, etc.

[0055] Incidentally, in the coin recognition unit 23, coins are conveyed from the front to the rear by the pin belt 44, similarly to the recognition conveyance guide unit 31A of the conveyance unit 22. For this reason, in the following, focusing on the progress of the coin, the front side is also referred to as the upstream side, and the rear side is also referred to as the downstream side. In the following, the rear direction in which the coins are conveyed by the conveyance unit 22 is also referred to as the conveyance direction, and the left-right direction perpendicular to this conveyance direction on the guide surface 41S is also referred to as the width direction.

[0056] The recognition control unit 50 is composed mainly of a CPU (not shown), and reads and executes various programs such as recognition programs from a storage unit consisting of a flash memory or the like, and performs various processes related to coin recognition based on various information obtained from the optical information acquisition unit 54 and the magnetic information acquisition unit 55.

[0057] The lower sensor frame 51 is made of a non-magnetic material and is formed in a relatively large rectangular parallelepiped shape, and is disposed so as to be embedded in the middle of the guide section 41. The guide surface 51S, which is the upper surface of the lower sensor frame 51, is formed flat, and forms a plane that is continuous with the guide surface 41S of the guide section 41. A left restricting section 42L and a part of a right restricting section 42R are disposed on the upper side of the lower sensor frame 51. A thin-plate-shaped reference abutment plate 42B is provided on the right side of the left restricting section 42L, and the right side surface of the reference abutment plate 42B serves as the reference surface 42S. Incidentally, the reference surface 42S is a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the guide surface 41S.

[0058] The upper left sensor frame 52 is made of a non-magnetic material and is formed into a relatively small rectangular parallelepiped shape, and is fixed to the left rear portion on the upper side of the lower sensor frame 51 at a distance equivalent to the thickness (i.e., the vertical length) of the left regulating portion 42L from the guide surface 51S. In other words, the upper left sensor frame 52 is disposed at a location facing the guide surface 41S across the transfer space 31S.

[0059] The upper right sensor frame 53 is made of a non-magnetic material and is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape shorter in the front-rear direction than the upper left sensor frame 52, and is fixed to the upper right rear part of the lower sensor frame 51 at a distance equal to the thickness of the right regulating part 42R from the guide surface 51S. When the upper right sensor frame 53 is viewed from the front side (FIG. 8), the vicinity of the lower left end (vertex) is shaped as if it has been cut off diagonally. Incidentally, a gap is formed between the upper left sensor frame 52 and the upper right sensor frame 53 to allow the pin belt 44 to pass through. Hereinafter, the upper left sensor frame 52 and the upper right sensor frame 53 are also collectively referred to as the conveyor facing part.

[0060] The optical information acquisition unit 54 as an optical sensor is disposed so as to be embedded in the front side of the lower sensor frame 51 in the middle of the guide unit 41, and is composed of a light-transmitting member 54T, a light-emitting element, a lens, an image sensor, and the like (not shown). The light-transmitting member 54T is a plate-like member having light transmittance and high strength, such as single crystal sapphire. The guide surface 54TS, which is the upper surface of the light-transmitting member 54T, is formed flat and forms a plane continuous with the front guide surface 41S and the rear guide surface 51S. For convenience, the guide surface 54TS and the guide surface 51S are hereinafter referred to as the guide surface 41S.

[0061] The light emitting element is disposed below the light transmitting member 54T, and emits light such as visible light or infrared light, which travels upward. This light passes through the light transmitting member 54T and reaches the transport space 31S above it. Furthermore, if there is a coin in the transport space 31S, this light is reflected by the underside of the coin to become reflected light, which passes through the light transmitting member 54T and travels downward.

[0062] The lens is disposed at a different location from the light-emitting element below the light-transmitting member 54T, and focuses the reflected light. The image sensor is disposed at or near the focal point below the lens, and captures an image of the reflected light focused by the lens, converts it into an electrical signal, and supplies it to the recognition control unit 50. The recognition control unit 50 forms image data based on the obtained electrical signal, and uses this image data for coin recognition processing.

[0063] The magnetic information acquisition unit 55 is composed of three sets of sensors, namely, a lower material sensor 55A, an overall material sensor 55B, and an outer diameter sensor 55C. As shown in Fig. 7, the lower material sensor 55A is located slightly to the right of the upper left sensor frame 52. The lower material sensor 55A is embedded in the lower sensor frame 51, which is located below the transfer space 31S, as shown in Fig. 9(A), which is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line B1-B2 in Fig. 7.

[0064] This lower material sensor 55A has a magnetic flux transmitter that transmits magnetic flux toward the upper side, and a magnetic flux receiver that receives magnetic flux arriving from the upper side, and generates a lower material reception signal as information representing the reception result by the magnetic flux receiver and notifies the recognition control unit 50. The recognition control unit 50 determines the surface material of the lower side of the coin based on the obtained lower material reception signal.

[0065] The overall material sensor 55B is disposed on the left side behind the lower material sensor 55A, that is, at a location relatively close to the reference surface 42S, as shown in Fig. 7. As shown in Fig. 9(B), which is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line C1-C2 in Fig. 7, the overall material sensor 55B is composed of an overall material sensor transmitter 55BL embedded in the lower sensor frame 51 below the transfer space 31S, and an overall material sensor receiver 55BU embedded in the upper left sensor frame 52 above the transfer space 31S.

[0066] The overall material sensor transmitting unit 55BL has a magnetic flux transmitting unit that transmits magnetic flux upward. When a coin is present in the transport space 31S, part of this magnetic flux is blocked by the coin, and the rest passes through the coin. The overall material sensor receiving unit 55BU receives the magnetic flux transmitted from the overall material sensor transmitting unit 55BL and that has passed through the coin, generates an overall material receiving signal, and notifies the recognition control unit 50. The recognition control unit 50 determines the overall material of the coin based on the obtained overall material receiving signal.

[0067] As shown in Fig. 7, the outer diameter sensor 55C is disposed behind the entire material sensor 55B and to the right of the lower material sensor 55A and the entire material sensor 55B, i.e., to the right of the portion through which the pin belt 44 passes, at a position relatively far from the reference surface 42S. As shown in Fig. 9(C), which is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line D1-D2 in Fig. 7, the outer diameter sensor 55C is composed of an outer diameter sensor transmitter 55CL embedded in the lower sensor frame 51 below the transfer space 31S, and an outer diameter sensor receiver 55CU embedded in the upper right sensor frame 53 above the transfer space 31S.

[0068] The outer diameter sensor transmitter 55CL, like the entire material sensor transmitter 55BL, has a magnetic flux transmitter that transmits magnetic flux upward. When a coin is present in the transport space 31S, part of this magnetic flux is blocked by the coin and the rest passes through the coin. The outer diameter sensor receiver 55CU, like the entire material sensor receiver 55BU, receives the magnetic flux transmitted from the outer diameter sensor transmitter 55CL and that has passed through the coin, generates an outer diameter reception signal, and notifies the recognition control unit 50. The recognition control unit 50 determines the outer diameter of the coin based on the obtained outer diameter reception signal.

[0069] Incidentally, the mounting positions of the sensors of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55 are adjusted in the left-right direction on the premise that the coin is transported in the transport space 31S with its left end in contact with the reference surface 42S. For this reason, in the coin verification unit 23 (FIG. 7), the blade biasing unit 57 and the brush biasing unit 58 bias the coin toward the reference surface 42S in the transport space 31S.

[0070] The blade biasing unit 57 (FIG. 7) is composed of a shaft 57X, a blade 57A, a contact portion 57B, a locking body 57C, and a spring 57D. The shaft 57X is in the shape of a long and thin cylinder with its central axis aligned in the up-down direction, and stands upward from a portion located on the upper surface of the guide unit 41 to the left of the optical information acquisition unit 54.

[0071] The blade 57A is made of a resin material and has a polyhedral shape that is long in the front-rear direction, short in the left-right direction, and short in the up-down direction. The vertical length of the blade 57A is smaller (shorter) than the vertical length of the left regulating portion 42L and the right regulating portion 42R, i.e., the vertical length of the conveying space 31S, and is larger (longer) than the thickness of one coin.

[0072] Moreover, the blade 57A has a shape in which about half of the front side is bent toward the left, while about half of the rear side is bent toward the left. When viewed from above, the left side surface of the blade 57A has a shape in which a straight line is bent in two places like a crank, and the front and rear parts are generally along the front-rear direction, while the center part is along the diagonal direction connecting the right front side and the left rear side. Incidentally, the upper and lower sides of the blade 57A are flat surfaces that are approximately parallel to the guide surface 41S, and the front, rear, left and right sides are flat surfaces that are approximately perpendicular to the guide surface 41S.

[0073] The rear end of the blade 57A is located rearward of the lower material sensor 55A, forward of the overall material sensor 55B and the outer diameter sensor 55C, and forward of the front end of the upper right sensor frame 53. Furthermore, the blade 57A is provided with a circular shaft hole 57AH that penetrates vertically near the front end. A shaft body 57X is inserted through the shaft hole 57AH, and the blade 57A can rotate on the guide surface 41S around the shaft body 57X.

[0074] The contact portion 57B is made of a non-magnetic material having high rigidity, such as stainless steel or ceramic, and is electrically insulated from other portions. The contact portion 57B is composed of a central contact portion 57BC and a rear contact portion 57BE, each of which is formed in a thin plate shape. The central contact portion 57BC covers a central portion of the left side surface of the blade 57A. The rear contact portion 57BE covers a rear portion of the left side surface of the blade 57A.

[0075] The locking body 57C is a rectangular parallelepiped that is sufficiently small compared to the blade 57A, and is disposed on the guide surface 41S on the rear and left side of the shaft body 57X. When the blade 57A tries to rotate counterclockwise around the shaft body 57X, the locking body 57C comes into contact with the front part of the left side surface of the blade 57A to limit the range of rotation. The spring 57D is, for example, a coil spring extending in the left-right direction, and when compressed from the natural state, the right end is fixed to the guide portion 41, and the left end is attached near the rear end of the blade 57A.

[0076] With this configuration, the blade biasing unit 57 can increase or decrease (i.e., change) the distance between the contact portion 57B and the reference surface 42S by rotating the blade 57A around the shaft 57X, in other words, can move the contact portion 57B closer to or farther from the reference surface 42S. Furthermore, the blade biasing unit 57 rotates the blade 57A counterclockwise around the shaft 57X by the action of the restoring force of the spring 57D, and stops it when it comes into contact with the locking body 57C. At this time, the rear contact portion 57BE is located to the right of the lower material sensor 55A, and forms a relatively small (short) gap between the rear contact portion 57BE and the reference surface 42S in the left-right direction. This gap is shorter than the diameter of the coin with the smallest diameter (hereinafter referred to as the minimum diameter coin) handled by the coin depositing / withdrawing unit 12.

[0077] The brush urging part 58 (FIG. 7) has an elongated shape in the front-rear direction as a whole, that is, a substantially linear shape extending along the front-rear direction when viewed from above, and is attached to the left side surface of the upper right sensor frame 53. That is, the brush urging part 58 is provided on the opposite side of the reference surface 42S with respect to the left-right direction, with the pin belt 44 sandwiched between them. The front end of the brush urging part 58 is located rearward (downstream) of the front end of the upper right sensor frame 53 and forward (upstream) of the outer diameter sensor 55C. The rear end of the brush urging part 58 is located rearward (downstream) of the outer diameter sensor 55C.

[0078] In the front-rear direction, the distance from the rear end of blade biasing portion 57 to the front end of brush biasing portion 58 is about 0.5 to 1.0 times the diameter of the minimum diameter coin. In addition, the distance from the center of entire material sensor 55B to the front end of brush biasing portion 58 is about 0.3 to 0.5 times the diameter of the minimum diameter coin. The distance from the front end of holding portion 58A to the center of outer diameter sensor 55C is about 0.2 to 0.4 times the diameter of the minimum diameter coin. The distance from the center of outer diameter sensor 55C to the rear end of brush biasing portion 58 is more than 0.5 times the diameter of the minimum diameter coin.

[0079] Furthermore, the distance from the reference plane 42S in the left-right direction to the front end of the brush urging part 58 is greater than the radius of the maximum diameter coin and slightly shorter than the diameter of the minimum diameter coin. The length of the brush urging part 58 in the front-rear direction is approximately equal to the diameter of the minimum diameter coin.

[0080] The brush biasing portion 58 is composed of a holding portion 58A, a bristle portion 58B, and a restricting portion 58C. The holding portion 58A is attached to the left side surface of the upper right sensor frame 53, and is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape that is long in the front-to-rear direction, short in the up-down direction, and extremely short in the left-to-right direction. As shown in Fig. 8, the upper and lower ends of the holding portion 58A are located at approximately the same height as the upper and lower ends of the left side surface of the upper right sensor frame 53.

[0081] The hair portion 58B is a bundle of many hairs, i.e., many objects made of elongated fibers, and the vicinity of the upper end is embedded and held inside the holding portion 58A. That is, the hair portion 58B is in a state where it grows downward from almost the entire range of the lower surface of the holding portion 58A. In other words, the brush biasing portion 58 is configured in a shape similar to a so-called brush. Each hair constituting the hair portion 58B has a linear elongated shape along the vertical direction and is a flexible member having flexibility. For convenience of explanation, hereinafter, the lower end of the hair portion 58B and each hair is also called one end, and the upper end is also called the other end.

[0082] The vertical length of the hair body 58B is slightly longer than the vertical length of the right regulating portion 42R, i.e., the vertical length of the transport space 31S, and is, for example, about 5 to 6 times the thickness of the thickest coin (hereinafter referred to as the thickest coin) among the coins handled by the coin depositing and dispensing portion 12. The lower end of the hair body 58B is located above the guide surface 41S with a small gap. This gap is 1 / 3 or less the thickness of the thinnest coin (hereinafter referred to as the thinnest coin) among the coins handled by the coin depositing and dispensing portion 12.

[0083] If a horizontal external force is applied near the lower end of hair portion 58B, the flexibility of each hair causes it to deform into a bent shape in the direction of the external force, and a restoring force acts to return it to its original shape (a straight line along the vertical direction).

[0084] The restricting portion 58C is configured as a plate-like member that is long in the front-rear direction, short in the up-down direction, and thin in the left-right direction. The length of the restricting portion 58C in the front-rear direction is equal to the length of the holding portion 58A in the front-rear direction. The length of the restricting portion 58C in the up-down direction is longer than the length of the holding portion 58A in the up-down direction, and is approximately the length of the holding portion 58A plus about half the length of the hair portion 58B in the up-down direction.

[0085] The restricting portion 58C is attached to the left side of the holding portion 58A so that the positions of the upper end, front end, and rear end are substantially aligned with those of the holding portion 58A. That is, the restricting portion 58C has its lower portion adjacent to the left side of approximately the upper half of the hair portion 58B. As a result, the restricting portion 58C restricts the hair portion 58B from bending significantly to the left while allowing the vicinity of the lower end to bend to the front, rear, and right.

[0086] 7 to 9, the coin verification unit 23 is provided with three types of sensors, namely, a lower material sensor 55A, an overall material sensor 55B, and an outer diameter sensor 55C, as the magnetic information acquisition unit 55. Of these, the lower material sensor 55A, the overall material sensor transmitting unit 55BL of the overall material sensor 55B, and the outer diameter sensor transmitting unit 55CL of the outer diameter sensor 55C are disposed below the transport space 31S, and therefore are provided within the lower sensor frame 51.

[0087] On the other hand, the overall material sensor receiving unit 55BU of the overall material sensor 55B and the outer diameter sensor receiving unit 55CU of the outer diameter sensor 55C, which are part of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55, need to be placed above the transfer space 31S. That is, in order to receive magnetic flux, the overall material sensor receiving unit 55BU and the outer diameter sensor receiving unit 55CU need to be placed in positions facing the overall material sensor transmitting unit 55BL and the outer diameter sensor transmitting unit 55CL, respectively, and within a predetermined distance therefrom.

[0088] For this reason, in the coin verification unit 23, an upper left sensor frame 52 and an upper right sensor frame 53 are provided only on the rear side of the upper side of the transport space 31S, and an overall material sensor receiving unit 55BU and an outer diameter sensor receiving unit 55CU are arranged inside them, respectively.

[0089] Thus, the coin recognition unit 23 has an optical information acquisition unit 54 and a magnetic information acquisition unit 55 (lower material sensor 55A, overall material sensor 55B and outer diameter sensor 55C) that acquire information from the coin, as well as a blade biasing unit 57 and a brush biasing unit 58.

[0090] [1-4. Coin recognition process in the coin recognition unit] Next, the coin recognition process in the coin recognition unit 23 will be described, i.e., the process of acquiring various pieces of information from the coin by the optical information acquisition unit 54 and the magnetic information acquisition unit 55 while transporting the coin by the pin belt 44 of the conveyor belt unit 32.

[0091] In the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12, as shown in Figures 3(A) to (D), when a coin CN is inserted into the coin deposit port 16, the separation disk 16D is rotated to separate and dispense the coin CN one by one through the gap with the separation gate 16G, and the coin is sent rearward at regular intervals by the deposit separation unit 21. As a result, each coin CN is transported rearward along the recognition and transport guide unit 31A by each pin 46 of the pin belt 44, and reaches the coin recognition unit 23. At this time, the coin CN is transported in a state where it does not necessarily abut against the reference surface 42S, as shown in Figure 3(D).

[0092] In the coin verification unit 23, first, as shown in FIG. 10(A), the coin CN comes into contact with the central contact portion 57BC of the blade biasing portion 57. Here, the central contact portion 57BC is an inclined surface connecting the right front side and the left rear side when viewed from above, and is inclined with respect to the conveying direction (i.e., the rear direction). Therefore, the coin CN is subjected to a force acting in the left front direction from the central contact portion 57BC. This force can be considered as the resultant force of a force acting in the forward direction and a force acting in the left direction. Meanwhile, the coin CN is subjected to a relatively large force acting in the rear direction from the pin 46 of the pin belt 44.

[0093] As a result, the forward component of the force received from the blade biasing portion 57 is canceled out and the coin CN moves backward, while the leftward component of the force received from the blade biasing portion 57 causes the left end to abut against the reference surface 42S, as shown in Figure 10(B).

[0094] Next, in the coin verification unit 23, as shown in Fig. 10(C), when the coin CN receives a force directed backward from the pin 46 of the pin belt 44, the coin CN is advanced backward while the left end of the coin CN is kept in contact with the reference surface 42S. At this time, the coin verification unit 23 transmits part of the force applied to the coin CN from the pin 46 to the blade biasing unit 57 from the vicinity of the right end of the coin CN. As a result, the blade biasing unit 57 rotates the blade 57A clockwise while compressing the spring 57D, widening the gap between the rear contact portion 57BE and the reference surface 42S. Also, at this time, in the coin verification unit 23, part of the coin CN comes directly above the lower material sensor 55A, and the lower material sensor 55A detects information from the coin CN.

[0095] When the distance between the rear contact portion 57BE and the reference surface 42S widens to the same diameter as the coin CN, the coin verification unit 23 advances the coin CN backward while keeping the left end of the coin CN in contact with the reference surface 42S and bringing the vicinity of the right end of the coin CN into contact with the rear contact portion 57BE, as shown in Fig. 10(D). At this time, the blade biasing unit 57 applies a force from the rear contact portion 57BE to the coin CN in a direction substantially to the left. This allows the coin CN to continue to advance backward while keeping the left end in contact with the reference surface 42S.

[0096] Then, in the coin verification unit 23, as shown in Figure 11, a part of the coin CN reaches the position of the entire material sensor 55B, i.e., between the entire material sensor receiving unit 55BU and the entire material sensor transmitting unit 55BL, and information is detected from the coin CN by these.

[0097] At this time, in the coin verification unit 23, the rear right part of the coin CN reaches directly below the brush biasing unit 58, so that the vicinity of the lower end of the hair body portion 58B is biased in the right rear upper direction and is bent, as shown in Fig. 12, which is a cross-sectional view taken along line E1-E2 in Fig. 11. As a result, the brush biasing unit 58 exerts a force on the coin CN in the left front lower direction due to the restoring force of the hair body portion 58B. This force can be considered to be the resultant force of a force in the forward direction, a force in the left direction, and a force in the downward direction. Meanwhile, the coin CN receives a relatively large force in the rear direction from the pin 46 of the pin belt 44.

[0098] As a result, the forward component of the force received from the brush biasing portion 58 of the coin CN is canceled out and the coin CN moves backward, while the component moving leftward causes the left end to abut against the reference surface 42S, and the component moving downward maintains the lower surface in abutment against the guide surface 41S.

[0099] Next, in the coin verification unit 23, the coin CN is transported further rearward by the movement of the pin belt 44, and as shown in Figure 13, the coin CN moves away from the rear abutment portion 57BE of the blade biasing portion 57 and is no longer subjected to force from the blade biasing portion 57.

[0100] 14(A), which is a cross-sectional view taken along line F1-F2 in FIG. 13, near the front end or center of the brush biasing portion 58, the vicinity of the lower end of the hair body portion 58B rides up on the coin CN. At this time, a rearward force is applied to the hair body portion 58B as the coin CN advances rearward, and bending to the left is restricted by the restricting portion 58C, so that the vicinity of the lower end is bent to the upper-right rear. Therefore, the restoring force of the hair body portion 58B applies a force to the coin CN in the lower-left front direction.

[0101] 14(B), which is a cross-sectional view taken along line G1-G2 in Fig. 13, in the vicinity of the rear end of the brush biasing part 58, the vicinity of the lower end of the hair body part 58B is biased in a right-rear-upper direction by the rear right part of the coin CN and is in a bent state, as in the case shown in Fig. 12. As a result, the brush biasing part 58 exerts a force on the coin CN in a left-front-lower direction due to the restoring force of the hair body part 58B.

[0102] Here, the force acting on the coin CN in the left-front downward direction from each portion of the brush biasing portion 58 can be regarded as the resultant force of a forward force, a leftward force, and a downward force, as in the above-mentioned case. On the other hand, the coin CN receives a relatively large rearward force from the pin 46 of the pin belt 44. As a result, of the force received from the brush biasing portion 58, the forward component is cancelled out and the coin CN moves rearward, while the leftward component causes the left end to abut against the reference surface 42S, and the downward component causes the lower surface to abut against the guide surface 41S, maintaining the state.

[0103] Furthermore, at this time, part of the coin CN passes between outer diameter sensor transmitting unit 55CL and outer diameter sensor receiving unit 55CU of outer diameter sensor 55C, and thus information is detected from the coin CN in the coin verification unit 23. That is, the coin verification unit 23 can detect information relating to the outer diameter of the coin CN while keeping the left end of the coin CN in contact with reference surface 42S and the lower surface in contact with guide surface 41S.

[0104] [1-5. Effects, etc.] In the above configuration, the coin recognition unit 23 of the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 according to the first embodiment is provided with an optical information acquisition unit 54 and a magnetic information acquisition unit 55, etc., which detect information about the coin, as well as a blade biasing unit 57 and a brush biasing unit 58 which bias the coin toward the reference surface 42S.

[0105] When a coin CN is transported from the front side by the pin belt 44 of the transport unit 22, the coin verification unit 23 urges the coin CN leftward using the blade urging unit 57, causing the coin CN to move backward while its left end abuts against the reference surface 42S (FIGS. 10(A)-(D)). At this time, the blade urging unit 57 first advances the coin CN leftward and causes it to abut against the reference surface 42S, because the central abutment portion 57BC is inclined with respect to the transport direction. Thereafter, the blade urging unit 57 appropriately rotates the blade 57A, utilizing the restoring force of the spring 57D to maintain the state in which the left end of the coin CN is abutted against the reference surface 42S, and causes the coin CN to move backward.

[0106] Next, the coin verification unit 23 advances the coin CN backward while keeping it in contact with the reference surface 42S by the brush biasing unit 58 (FIGS. 11 to 14). When the coin CN comes into contact with the vicinity of the lower end of the hair portion 58B, the brush biasing unit 58 applies a force in the left-front-downward direction due to the restoring force of the hair portion 58B, which is deflected in the right-rear-upper direction. As a result, the brush biasing unit 58 brings the coin CN into contact with the reference surface 42S by the leftward component of this force, and maintains the state in which the coin CN is pressed against the guide surface 41S by the downward component.

[0107] In this way, the coin verification unit 23 brings the coin CN into contact with the reference surface 42S using the blade biasing unit 57 and the brush biasing unit 58, and moves it backward while pressing it against the guide surface 41S, and detects information about the coin CN using the lower material sensor 55A, overall material sensor 55B, and outer diameter sensor 55C of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55. Therefore, the coin verification unit 23 can accurately determine the surface material, overall material, and outer diameter of the coin CN in the recognition control unit 50 based on the information obtained from each sensor, and can recognize the denomination and authenticity of the coin CN with high accuracy based on this.

[0108] In addition, in the coin verification unit 23, the brush biasing part 58 is disposed to the right of the pin belt 44, that is, on the opposite side of the reference surface 42S across the pin belt 44 (FIG. 7). Therefore, in the coin verification unit 23, when the coin CN reaches the front end of the brush biasing part 58 by the running of the pin belt 44 (FIG. 11), the right side of the front end part of the coin, which is inclined so as to connect the left front side and the right rear side when viewed from above, is brought into contact with the vicinity of the lower end of the hair body part 58B. At this time, since the coin CN advances rearward in the coin verification unit 23, it can be actively bent in the right rear upper direction against the vicinity of the lower end of the hair body part 58B, and the restoring force of this can apply a force toward the left front lower direction to the coin CN, that is, a force toward the reference surface 42S and the guide surface 41S can be applied.

[0109] Furthermore, the brush biasing section 58 is provided with a regulating section 58C at a position adjacent to the right side of the holding section 58A and the hair body section 58B (FIG. 8). Therefore, in the coin verification section 23, when the vicinity of the lower end of the hair body section 58B comes into contact with the coin CN or rides up on the coin CN, the hair body section 58B can be effectively prevented from bending to the left. This makes it possible for the coin verification section 23 to prevent the restoring force of the hair body section 58B from acting on the coin CN with a force including a rightward component, that is, from acting on the coin CN to pull it away from the reference surface 42S, and allows the coin CN to stably come into contact with the reference surface 42S.

[0110] Here, for comparison with the coin verification unit 23 according to the first embodiment, we will assume a virtual first coin verification unit 123 and a virtual second coin verification unit 223 in which the configurations of the blade energization unit 57 and the brush energization unit 58 are virtually changed in two ways, and explain how to verify a transported coin CN.

[0111] As shown in Figures 15 and 16 which correspond to Figures 7 and 8 respectively, the first virtual first coin verification unit 123 is provided with a blade biasing unit 157 in place of the blade biasing unit 57, but omits the brush biasing unit 58, compared to the coin verification unit 23 according to the first embodiment. The blade biasing unit 157 has a similar configuration to the blade biasing unit 57, but is provided with a blade 157A and a contact portion 157B in place of the blade 57A and the contact portion 57B.

[0112] The blade 157A is shaped such that the rear portion of the blade 57A extends rearward and reaches the rear side of the outer diameter sensor 55C. The abutment portion 157B is a rear abutment portion 157BE that replaces the rear abutment portion 57BE and extends rearward to match the blade 157A. That is, the blade 157A and the rear abutment portion 157BE are configured such that a portion of them enters the lower side of the upper right sensor frame 53. Incidentally, in the virtual first coin verification portion 123, a portion of the right regulating portion 42R is omitted from the viewpoint of avoiding interference with the blade 157A, and the upper right sensor frame 53 is supported by a support portion 156 provided on the rear side.

[0113] When a coin CN is transported from the front by the pin belt 44, this virtual first coin recognition unit 123 abuts the coin CN against the blade biasing unit 157, as shown in Figures 17(A) to (D) corresponding to Figure 10, etc., and rotates the blade 157A appropriately, thereby moving the coin CN backward while abutting it against the reference surface 42S.

[0114] However, in the virtual first coin verification unit 123, although the blade biasing unit 157 applies a force to the coin CN generally in the left direction, this force contains almost no downward component, so there is a possibility that the coin CN will float up from the guide surface 41S during transport. In addition, in the virtual first coin verification unit 123, as shown in FIG. 16, the gap between the rear part of the blade 157A and the upper right sensor frame 53 is relatively narrow, so there is a possibility that a foreign object OBJ will be caught between them, as shown in FIG. 18. In this case, in the virtual first coin verification unit 123, the blade 157A cannot rotate, so there is a possibility that the coin CN cannot be biased toward the reference surface 42S. In these cases, there is a possibility that the accuracy of information detected from the coin CN by each sensor of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55 in the virtual first coin verification unit 123 will be significantly reduced.

[0115] In this case, the virtual first coin verification unit 123 requires maintenance work to remove the foreign object OBJ, and from the viewpoint of increasing the efficiency of the maintenance work, it is conceivable to configure the upper right sensor frame 53 to be detachable from the lower sensor frame 51. However, in this case, in the virtual first coin verification unit 123, the positional accuracy of the outer diameter sensor receiving unit 55CU in the upper right sensor frame 53 relative to the outer diameter sensor transmitting unit 55CL in the lower sensor frame 51 decreases, so that the accuracy of the obtained outer diameter reception signal decreases, and there is a risk that the accuracy in determining the outer diameter of the coin CN also decreases.

[0116] As shown in Fig. 19 corresponding to Fig. 7, the second virtual second coin verification unit 223 is different from the coin verification unit 23 according to the first embodiment in that the blade urging unit 57 is omitted and instead a virtual brush urging unit 258 is provided. This virtual brush urging unit 258 is disposed in front of the brush urging unit 58 and is configured similarly to the brush urging unit 58, and has hair body portions 258B corresponding to the hair body portions 58B, etc.

[0117] When a coin CN is transported from the front by the pin belt 44, the coin CN comes into contact with the front end portion of the virtual brush biasing portion 258, and biases and bends the vicinity of the lower end of the hair portion 258B in the right front upper direction. As a result, the virtual brush biasing portion 258 applies a force in the left front lower direction to the coin CN due to the restoring force of the hair portion 258B, and biases the coin CN leftward with the leftward component of the force.

[0118] However, in the virtual second coin verification unit 223, the force acting on the coin CN from the hair body 258B to the left is smaller (weaker) than in the blade biasing unit 57 (FIG. 7). For this reason, in the virtual second coin verification unit 223, for example, when the coin CN is transported at a position relatively to the right in the transport space 31S, it may take a relatively long time for the left end of the coin CN to abut against the reference surface 42S. In that case, in the virtual second coin verification unit 223, as shown in FIGS. 20(A) to (C), when the sensors of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55 detect information from the coin CN, there is a possibility that the left end of the coin CN will not abut against the reference surface 42S, and in this case, the accuracy of the detected information may be significantly deteriorated.

[0119] In addition, in the virtual second coin recognition unit 223, as shown in Figure 21, when a part of the coin CN abuts against the front end of the brush energizing unit 58, forces are applied to the coin CN from the pin 46 of the pin belt 44, the hair portion 258B of the virtual brush energizing unit 258, and the hair portion 58B of the brush energizing unit 58.

[0120] At this time, the pin 46 applies a relatively large force F46 in a rearward direction to the vicinity of the front end of the coin CN. Each portion from the front end to the rear end of the hair body portion 258B applies a relatively small force F258 mainly in a front-down direction to a slightly right-side portion of the top surface of the coin CN, i.e., to the right of the pin 46. Furthermore, the hair body portion 58B applies a relatively small force F58 in a left-front-downward direction to the right-side portion of the rear end of the coin CN by its front end portion.

[0121] That is, in the coin CN, the forces F46 and F258 act in opposite directions with respect to the front-to-rear direction, and the force F46 acts to the left of the force F258. Moreover, the force F46 does not contain a component in the downward direction, but the force F258 contains a component in the downward direction. Furthermore, the force F58 also contains a component in the forward direction and a component in the downward direction, like the force F258.

[0122] Then, a clockwise moment is generated in the coin CN about point Q located near the front end of the imaginary brush biasing unit 258. If this force becomes larger than the leftward component of F58 by the brush biasing unit 58, the coin CN will attempt to rotate about point Q in the imaginary second coin verification unit 223, pulling the left end away from the reference surface 42S. As a result, there is a risk that the accuracy of the imaginary second coin verification unit 223 will decrease significantly, particularly when detecting information from the coin CN using the outer diameter sensor 55C.

[0123] In this way, in the virtual first coin recognition unit 123 which omits the brush energization unit 58, and the virtual second coin recognition unit 223 which omits the blade energization unit 57, it may become difficult to abut the coin CN against the reference surface 42S or to maintain that abutted state, which may reduce the accuracy of the information detected from the coin CN.

[0124] In contrast to these, the coin recognition unit 23 according to the first embodiment (Figures 7 to 9) combines a blade biasing unit 57 and a brush biasing unit 58, making it easy to abut the coin CN against the reference surface 42S and maintain that state, and can obtain highly accurate recognition results based on the information detected from the coin CN.

[0125] According to the above configuration, when a coin CN is transported by the pin belt 44, the coin verification unit 23 of the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 according to the first embodiment urges the coin CN leftward using the blade urging unit 57 to abut against the reference surface 42S. The coin verification unit 23 also flexes the hair portion 58B of the brush urging unit 58 to apply a force to the coin CN in a left-front downward direction, and advances the coin CN backward while maintaining the state of abutting against the reference surface 42S and the guide surface 41S, and detects information using the sensors of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55. This allows the coin verification unit 23 to accurately determine the surface material, overall material, and outer diameter of the coin CN from the obtained information, and to accurately recognize the denomination, authenticity, etc. of the coin CN.

[0126] 2. Second embodiment A cash register change system 301 (FIG. 1) according to the second embodiment differs from the cash register change system 1 according to the first embodiment in that it has a change machine 303 instead of the change machine 3, but is otherwise configured in a similar manner. The change machine 303 differs from the change machine 3 according to the first embodiment in that it has a coin deposit / withdrawal unit 312 instead of the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12, but is otherwise configured in a similar manner. The coin deposit / withdrawal unit 312 (FIG. 2) differs from the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 according to the first embodiment in that it has a coin verification unit 323 instead of the coin verification unit 23, but is otherwise configured in a similar manner.

[0127] As shown in Figures 22 and 23, which correspond to Figures 7 and 8, the coin recognition unit 323 has a left regulating portion 342L and a blade biasing portion 357 instead of the left regulating portion 42L and the blade biasing portion 57, and forms a conveying space 331S instead of the conveying space 31S, but is configured similarly in other respects.

[0128] The left regulating portion 342L (FIG. 23) is different from the left regulating portion 42L (FIG. 8) in that the right side surface is not perpendicular to the guide surface 41S, but is an inclined surface that connects the lower left side and the upper right side, that is, inclined toward the conveying space 331S side. A thin-plate-shaped reference abutment plate 342B corresponding to the reference abutment plate 42B in the first embodiment is provided on the right side surface of the left regulating portion 342L, and the right side surface of the reference abutment plate 342B is inclined similarly to the right side surface of the left regulating portion 342L, and serves as the reference surface 342S. Hereinafter, the reference surface 342S is also referred to as the reference surface-side inclined surface.

[0129] The blade biasing portion 357 differs from the blade biasing portion 57 of the first embodiment in that it has a blade 357A and abutment portion 357B instead of the blade 57A and abutment portion 57B, but is otherwise configured in the same manner.

[0130] The blade 357A (FIG. 23) is different from the blade 57A (FIG. 7) in that the left side surface is an inclined surface that connects the upper left side and the lower right side, that is, inclined toward the transfer space 331S side, but is otherwise configured similarly. The contact portion 357B is composed of a central contact portion 357BC and a rear contact portion 357BE that respectively correspond to the central contact portion 57BC and the rear contact portion 57BE of the contact portion 57B according to the first embodiment. The central contact portion 357BC and the rear contact portion 357BE are each inclined like the left side surface of the blade 357A. Hereinafter, the left side surface of the contact portion 357B is also referred to as the contact portion side inclined surface.

[0131] With this configuration, when a coin CN is transported from the front by the pin belt 44 (Figure 2, etc.), the coin recognition unit 323 causes the coin CN to abut against the blade biasing portion 357, as in the case shown in Figures 10(A) to (D) in the first embodiment, and brings the coin CN into contact with the reference surface 342S, accompanied by rotation of the blade 357A, etc.

[0132] At this time, as shown in Fig. 24 corresponding to Fig. 23, the upper end portion of the left side of the coin CN abuts against the reference surface 342S, and applies a force F342 in a lower right direction to the coin CN from the reference surface 342S. The coin verification unit 323 also abuts against the abutment portion 357B at the upper end portion of the right side of the coin CN, and applies a force F357 in a lower left direction to the coin CN from the abutment portion 357B. In other words, the coin CN is biased leftward and pressed downward.

[0133] Next, when the coin CN is transported rearward by the pin belt 44 (Figure 2, etc.), a part of the coin CN abuts against the front end of the brush biasing portion 58, as in the case shown in Figure 11 in the first embodiment.

[0134] At this time, as shown in Fig. 25, which corresponds to Fig. 23 and Fig. 24, the coin verification unit 323 applies a force in a left-front downward direction from the hair portion 58B of the brush biasing unit 58 to the vicinity of the upper end of the right side of the coin CN. The coin verification unit 323 also applies a force F342 in a right-downward direction from the reference surface 342S to the vicinity of the upper end of the left side of the coin CN. In other words, the coin CN continues to be biased leftward and pressed downward.

[0135] In this way, the coin verification unit 323 can apply a downward force from both the left and right sides to the coin CN in addition to contacting the coin CN with the reference surface 342S as in the first embodiment. This allows the coin verification unit 323 to effectively detect information on the coin CN using the sensors of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55 while pressing the coin CN against the guide surface 41S and stabilizing its position, and based on this, the verification control unit 50 can accurately verify the denomination, authenticity, etc. of the coin CN.

[0136] In other respects as well, the coin depositing and dispensing unit 312 according to the second embodiment can achieve the same effects as the coin depositing and dispensing unit 12 according to the first embodiment.

[0137] According to the above configuration, when a coin CN is transported by the pin belt 44, the coin verification unit 323 of the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 312 according to the second embodiment urges the coin CN in a lower left direction by the blade urging unit 357 to abut against the reference surface 342S and urges it downward. In addition, the coin verification unit 323 applies a force to the coin CN in a lower left front direction by bending the hair portion 58B of the brush urging unit 58, and advances the coin CN backward while maintaining the state of abutting against the reference surface 342S and the guide surface 41S, and detects information by each sensor of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55. As a result, the coin verification unit 323 can accurately determine the surface material, overall material and outer diameter of the coin CN from the obtained information, and can accurately recognize the denomination, authenticity, etc. of the coin CN.

[0138] 3. Other embodiments In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the blade biasing unit 57 is disposed on the front side (upstream side) of the coin verification unit 23 (FIG. 7, etc.), and the brush biasing unit 58 is disposed on the rear side (downstream side). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in the case where a sensor capable of detecting necessary information without bringing the coin CN into contact with the reference surface 42S is disposed on the upstream side of the magnetic information acquisition unit 55, the brush biasing unit 58 may be disposed on the upstream side, and the blade biasing unit 57 may be disposed on the downstream side. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0139] In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the brush biasing portion 58 has been described as being configured to hold the vicinity of the upper end of the hairs constituting the hair portion 58B by embedding it inside the holding portion 58A. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various configurations may be used, for example, the upper end of each hair constituting the hair portion 58B may be fixed to the lower surface of the holding portion 58A. In short, by fixing the vicinity of the upper end of each hair in the hair portion 58B to the holding portion 58A by the holding portion 58A, it is sufficient that the hair portion 58B can be deflected when an external force is applied to the lower end portion of the hair portion 58B. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0140] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the hair portion 58B of the brush biasing portion 58 is described as being configured by bundling a plurality of hairs. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a plurality of hairs standing upright facing downward may be provided at a plurality of discrete locations on the lower surface of the holding portion 58A, and a collection of these plurality of hairs spaced apart from one another may be used as the hair portion 58B. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0141] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the case has been described where the distance between the lower end of the hair body part 58B in the brush biasing part 58 and the guide surface 41S is 1 / 3 or less of the thickness of the minimum thickness coin. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the distance may be set to at least less than the thickness of the minimum thickness coin. In short, it is sufficient that the lower end of the hair body part 58B bends in contact with the coin and applies a force to the coin CN in the left front downward direction. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0142] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the brush urging portion 58 is configured in a straight line along the front-rear direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be configured in two or more rows spaced apart in the left-right direction, such as by providing a brush urging portion 458 in addition to the brush urging portion 58, as in the coin verification portion 423 shown in FIG. 26(A). Also, for example, as in the coin verification portion 523 shown in FIG. 26(B), a brush urging portion 558 formed in a triangular wave shape when viewed from above may be provided. Alternatively, as in the coin verification portion 623 shown in FIG. 26(C), a brush urging portion 658 formed in a wave shape (sine wave shape) when viewed from above may be provided. Furthermore, as in the coin verification portion 723 shown in FIG. 26(D), a brush urging portion 758 formed in an arc shape when viewed from above may be provided. Also, as in the coin verification unit 823 shown in FIG. 26(E), the brush urging unit 858 configured to be relatively short in the front-rear direction may be arranged at a plurality of locations dispersed in the front-rear direction, or as in the coin verification unit 923 shown in FIG. 26(F), the brush urging unit 958 configured to be relatively short in the front-rear direction may be arranged at a plurality of locations dispersed in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction. Furthermore, in the coin verification unit 423 (FIG. 26(A)) and the coin verification unit 923 (FIG. 26(F)), the stiffness (flexibility) of the hair body 58B may be made different depending on the position in the left-right direction, for example, by increasing the stiffness of the hair body toward the right side. That is, the brush urging unit 58 may be formed in a substantially straight line extending along the conveying direction (i.e., the front-rear direction) as shown in FIGS. 26(A) to (E), or may be formed in a state of being dispersed in a plurality of locations on a plane parallel to the guide surface 41S as shown in FIG. 26(F). The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0143] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the case where the brush biasing portion 58 is provided with the thin plate-shaped restricting portion 58C (FIG. 8) has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and restricting portions having various shapes, such as a frame shape corresponding to only the outer peripheral portion of the restricting portion 58C, may be provided. Alternatively, for example, when the vicinity of the lower end of the hair portion 58B is extremely rarely bent to the left, the restricting portion 58C may be omitted. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0144] Further, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the blade 57A of the blade biasing portion 57 is rotated around the shaft body 57X to increase or decrease the distance between the contact portion 57B and the reference surface 42S. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the blade 57A may be configured to move in parallel in the left-right direction relative to the guide portion 41 or the right regulating portion 42R, and the distance between the contact portion 57B and the reference surface 42S may be increased or decreased by the left-right movement of the blade 57A. Alternatively, the blade 57A may be formed of a flexible material, and the vicinity of the front end may be fixed to the guide portion 41 or the right regulating portion 42R, and the blade 57A may be bent (flexed) to increase or decrease the distance between the contact portion 57B and the reference surface 42S. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0145] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the blade 57A in the blade biasing unit 57 of the coin verification unit 23 (FIG. 7, etc.) is described as having a polyhedral shape. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the blade 57A may be lightened by drilling a plurality of holes penetrating in the vertical direction while leaving the parts that form the outer shape of the blade 57A and the parts that ensure its strength. This allows the blade 57A to rotate at a higher speed, so that even when the coin conveyance speed is increased, the blade 57A can be made to follow the movement of the coin well, that is, to be kept in contact with the reference surface 42S. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0146] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the magnetic information acquisition unit 55 is provided with three sets of sensors, namely, the lower material sensor 55A, the overall material sensor 55B, and the outer diameter sensor 55C. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various sensors that use magnetism to detect information from the coin CN may be provided, and the number of sensors may be two sets or less or four sets or more. In these cases, it is desirable to place the upper right sensor frame 53 outside the movable range of the blade 57A in the blade biasing unit 57. Furthermore, not limited to sensors that use magnetism, various sensors that detect information representing various physical quantities such as light and electromagnetic waves from the coin CN may be placed. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0147] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the optical information acquisition unit 54 is provided in the coin verification unit 23 (FIGS. 7 and 8), and image data is generated by capturing an image of the underside of the coin. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the optical information acquisition unit 54 may be omitted. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0148] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the pin belt 44 having a belt 45 with multiple pins 46 is arranged above the conveying space 31S (FIGS. 2 and 3). However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a groove may be formed in the center in the left-right direction of the guide section 41 of the conveying guide unit 31, the belt 45 of the pin belt 44 may be arranged inside the groove, and the upper ends of the pins 46 may be protruded above the guide surface 41S, and the pin belt 44 may be made to run below the conveying space 31S to convey coins. In this case, various sensors may be arranged in the coin verification unit 23 at positions that do not interfere with the pin belt 44. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0149] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, a case has been described in which the pin belt 44 having a plurality of pins 46 provided on the belt 45 is made to run along the conveying direction, and the coins are conveyed in the conveying direction by abutting the pins 46 against the coins (FIGS. 2 and 3). However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, as in the conveying belt section 1032 shown in FIG. 27(A) and (B), a protruding belt 1044 having protrusions 1046 provided at a plurality of discrete points on the lower surface of the belt 1045 may be made to run along the conveying direction, and the protrusions 1046 may be made to abut against the coins CN to convey them in the conveying direction. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0150] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the change machine 3 is provided with the banknote deposit / withdrawal unit 11 and the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12, and both banknotes and coins are handled. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the banknote deposit / withdrawal unit 11 may be omitted from the change machine 3, and only coins may be handled. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0151] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to the coin recognition unit 23 provided in the coin deposit / withdrawal unit 12 of the change machine 3. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention may be applied to various electronic devices that perform a coin deposit process, such as an automated teller machine (ATM), a vending machine, or a settlement machine. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0152] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and other embodiments. That is, the scope of application of the present invention extends to embodiments in which the above-described embodiments and the other embodiments are combined in part or in whole in any manner, or to embodiments in which parts are extracted.

[0153] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, a description has been given of a case in which the coin recognition unit 23 as a coin recognition device is configured by the conveying guide unit 31 as a conveying guide, the magnetic information acquisition unit 55 as a sensor, the blade biasing unit 57 as a first biasing unit, and the brush biasing unit 58 as a second biasing unit. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the coin recognition device may be configured by a conveying guide, a sensor, a first biasing unit, and a second biasing unit having various other configurations. [Industrial Applicability]

[0154] The present invention can be used, for example, in a coin recognition section of a coin depositing and dispensing section incorporated in a change machine of a cash register change system. [Explanation of symbols]

[0155] 1, 301...cash register change system, 3, 303...change machine, 12, 312...coin deposit / withdrawal section, 16...coin deposit port, 20...coin control section, 22...conveying section, 23, 323...coin recognition section, 31...conveying guide section, 31A...recognition conveying guide section, 31B...sorting conveying guide section, 31S, 331S...conveying space, 32...conveying belt section, 41...guide section, 41S, 51S...guide surface, 42B, 342B...reference contact plate, 42L, 342L...left regulating section, 42R...right regulating section, 42S, 342S...reference surface, 44...pin belt, 45...belt, 46...pin, 50...recognition control section, 51...lower sensor Frame, 52...upper left sensor frame, 53...upper right sensor frame, 54...optical information acquisition section, 55...magnetic information acquisition section, 55A...lower material sensor, 55B...overall material sensor, 55C...outer diameter sensor, 57, 357...blade energizing section, 57A, 357A...blade, 57B, 357B...contact section, 57BC, 357BC...central contact section, 57BE, 357BE...rear contact section, 57D...spring, 58...brush energizing section, 58A...holding section, 58B...hair section, 58C...regulating section, 123...virtual first coin recognition section, 223...virtual second coin recognition section, CN...coin, OBJ...foreign object.

Claims

1. a conveying guide that forms a conveying path along which coins are conveyed in a conveying direction, the conveying guide having a guide surface that guides the coins and a reference surface that regulates a movement range of the coins in a width direction perpendicular to the conveying direction on the guide surface; A sensor for detecting information of the coin; a first biasing unit that biases the coin in the width direction toward the reference surface; a second biasing section provided on the downstream side or the upstream side of the first biasing section in the conveying direction, and biasing the coin at least toward the reference surface; Equipped with The second biasing portion is A flexible member having flexibility between one end and the other end; a holding portion that holds the other end of the flexible member that is located farther from the guide surface; Equipped with The distance between the one end of the flexible member and the guide surface is smaller than the thickness of a minimum thickness coin that is the smallest among the coins. A coin identification device.

2. When the one end side of the flexible member comes into contact with the coin being transported in the transport path, the second urging portion bends in a direction including a directional component moving away from the reference surface and urges the coin at least toward the reference surface.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

3. The second biasing portion is a restricting portion provided on the reference surface side of the flexible member and restricting the one end side of the flexible member from bending toward the reference surface side; 3. The coin validator of claim 2, further comprising:

4. The flexible member is a bundle of linear hairs.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

5. The second biasing portion is formed in a substantially linear shape extending along the transport direction.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

6. The second biasing portion biases the coin toward the reference surface and the guide surface.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

7. The first biasing portion has a contact portion that contacts the coin, and is capable of changing a distance between the contact portion and the reference surface by moving closer to or away from the reference surface.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

8. The contact portion of the first biasing portion has a contact portion side inclined surface that is inclined so as to approach the reference surface side as it moves away from the guide surface.

8. The coin identifying device according to claim 7.

9. The reference surface has a reference surface side inclined surface that is inclined so as to approach the abutment portion of the first biasing portion as it moves away from the guide surface.

8. The coin identifying device according to claim 7.

10. the conveying guide has a length in the width direction of the guide surface that is greater than the diameter of a maximum diameter coin among the coins; The second biasing portion is disposed at a position where a distance between the second biasing portion and the reference surface in the width direction is larger than a radius of the maximum diameter coin in a state where the second biasing portion is in contact with the reference surface.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

11. A conveying section that travels along the conveying direction and applies a force to the coin in the conveying direction. Further comprising: The second biasing portion is disposed on the opposite side of the reference surface across the portion along which the transport action portion travels.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

12. The sensor includes an outer diameter sensor that detects an outer diameter of the coin, The second biasing portion has an upstream end in the transport direction located upstream of a position where the outer diameter sensor is provided.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

13. The sensor includes an optical sensor that captures an image of the coin; The optical sensor is disposed upstream of a position where the coin is urged to the reference surface by the first urging portion.

13. The coin identification device according to claim 12.

14. a conveying facing portion disposed at a position facing the guide surface across the conveying path; Further comprising: the sensor is provided at a plurality of locations along the conveying direction, and at least a portion of the sensor is provided at the conveying facing portion; The first biasing portion biases the coin toward at least the reference surface outside a range between the guide surface and the transport opposing portion, The second biasing portion is provided at the transport facing portion.

2. The coin identifying device according to claim 1.

15. A currency handling device having a coin receiving port for receiving coins and a coin identifying device for identifying the coins, The coin identification device includes: a conveying guide that forms a conveying path along which the coins are conveyed in a conveying direction, the conveying guide having a guide surface that guides the coins and a reference surface that regulates a movement range of the coins in a width direction perpendicular to the conveying direction on the guide surface; A sensor for detecting information of the coin; a first biasing unit that biases the coin in the width direction toward the reference surface; a second biasing section provided on the downstream side or the upstream side of the first biasing section in the conveying direction, and biasing the coin at least toward the reference surface; Equipped with The second biasing portion is A flexible member having flexibility between one end and the other end; a holding portion that holds the other end of the flexible member that is located farther from the guide surface; Equipped with The distance between the one end of the flexible member and the guide surface is smaller than the thickness of a minimum thickness coin that is the smallest among the coins. A currency handling device characterized by:

Images