Media processing device and media transaction device

The media processing device in automatic teller machines addresses the issue of mixed banknotes by using a controlled conveying system to separate normal from abnormal banknotes, enhancing counting accuracy and reliability.

JP7647370B2Active Publication Date: 2025-03-18OKI ELECTRIC INDUSTRY CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2021099779
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Patents
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2021-06-15
Publication Date
2025-03-18
Estimated Expiration
2041-06-15

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

In automatic teller machines that perform direct deposits, normal banknotes are mixed with abnormal banknotes in the conveying section, leading to incorrect counting and reduced reliability.

Method used

The media processing device includes a deposit section, a feed section, a first conveying section driven by a first driving source, an identification section, a second conveying section driven by a third driving source, and a storage cabinet. If an abnormal medium is detected, the system stops the first drive source, conveys normal media to the second conveying section, and prevents normal banknotes from staying in the second conveying section.

Benefits of technology

This solution prevents the mixing of normal and abnormal banknotes, ensuring accurate counting and improving the reliability of the media processing device.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

To improve reliability.SOLUTION: A bill receiving / paying machine includes: a capturing / discharging unit 12C to be driven by a motor M1 to deliver a bill from a receiving / paying unit 12; a first conveyance unit connected to the receiving / paying unit 12 and driven by a motor M2 which drives independently from the motor M1 to convey a bill; a discrimination unit 14 provided for the first conveyance unit to discriminate the bill conveyed; a rear-side conveyance unit 22 connected to the first conveyance unit and driven by a motor M3 which drives independently from the motors M1 and M2 to convey a bill; a bill storage connected to the rear-side conveyance unit 22 and storing a normal bill; and a bill control unit that when it is determined in the first conveyance unit that there is a reception rejected bill or a jammed bill which is an abnormal bill, stops driving of the motor M1 to stop the capturing / discharging unit 12C, and stops driving of the motor M2 to stop the first conveyance unit, and causes the normal bill present in the rear-side conveyance unit 22 to be conveyed to and stored in the bill storage.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3
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Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a medium processing device and a medium transaction device, and is suitable for use in an automated teller machine (ATM) or the like in which a desired transaction is performed by inserting paper-like media such as banknotes. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, automated teller machines used in financial institutions and the like perform various transactions, such as deposit transactions in which a customer deposits cash such as bills and coins, and withdrawal transactions in which cash is withdrawn from a customer, depending on the content of the transaction with the customer. There is also a type of automated teller machine known as a recycling type, in which bills deposited by a customer in one transaction are reused in subsequent transactions and withdrawn to another customer.

[0003] As such a recycling-type automated teller machine, there is one equipped with a banknote deposit / withdrawal machine that performs processes related to depositing and withdrawing banknotes. As this banknote deposit / withdrawal machine, for example, one that has been proposed includes a deposit / withdrawal section that delivers and receives banknotes to and from customers, a transport section that transports banknotes, a discrimination section that discriminates the denomination and authenticity of inserted banknotes, a temporary storage section that temporarily holds inserted banknotes, a banknote storage vault that stores banknotes by denomination, and a reject vault that stores banknotes that should not be reused (for example, see Patent Document 1).

[0004] In addition, in some banknote deposit and withdrawal machines, in a deposit transaction, banknotes that have been inserted into the deposit and withdrawal section and have not yet been identified in the validation section and confirmed as a deposit are not temporarily held in a temporary holding section, but are instead transported directly from the deposit and withdrawal section to a banknote storage vault by a transport section and stored therein, thereby performing a direct deposit, which allows a large number of banknotes to be deposited in one transaction without being limited by the upper limit of the number of banknotes that can be held in the temporary holding section, speeding up deposit transactions and improving operational efficiency. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2015-201163 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] When performing direct deposit in a banknote deposit and withdrawal machine as shown in Patent Document 1, if a banknote being transported in the transport section is a rejected banknote, it is possible to stop transport of the banknotes in the transport section and return all banknotes present in the transport section to the deposit and withdrawal section. Also, when performing direct deposit in such a banknote deposit and withdrawal machine, if a banknote being transported in the transport section becomes a jammed banknote, the transport of the banknotes in the transport section is stopped. However, in such a case, normal banknotes and abnormal banknotes such as rejected banknotes and jammed banknotes are mixed in the transport section, and normal banknotes may be returned to customers or counting results may be erroneous, resulting in a loss of reliability.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to propose a medium processing device and a medium transaction device that can improve reliability. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve this problem, the media processing device of the present invention comprises a deposit section into which media is inserted, a payout section driven by a first drive source and paying out the media from the deposit section, a first transport section connected to the deposit section and driven by a second drive source that drives independently of the first drive source and transports the media, a discrimination section provided in the first transport section and discriminating the media being transported, a second transport section connected to the first transport section and driven by a third drive source that drives independently of the first drive source and the second drive source and transports the media, and a storage cabinet connected to the second transport section and storing the media, and when it is determined that an abnormal medium is present in the first transport section: If the abnormal medium is a jammed medium that is stuck in the first conveying section, The driving of the first driving source is stopped to stop the feeding unit. After the normal medium preceding the abnormal medium in the first conveying section is conveyed to the second conveying section, The driving of the second driving source is stopped to stop the first conveying section, and the second conveying section is normal A control unit is provided for transporting the medium to the storage unit and storing the medium therein.

[0009] In addition, the media transaction device of the present invention includes a deposit section into which paper-like media to be traded with users is inserted, a payout section driven by a first drive source and paying out the media from the deposit section, a first transport section connected to the deposit section and driven by a second drive source that drives independently of the first drive source and transports the media, a discrimination section provided in the first transport section and discriminating the media being transported, a second transport section connected to the first transport section and driven by a third drive source that drives independently of the first drive source and the second drive source and transports the media, and a storage unit connected to the second transport section and storing the media, and when it is determined that abnormal media is present in the first transport section, If the abnormal medium is a jammed medium that is stuck in the first conveying section, The driving of the first driving source is stopped to stop the feeding unit. After the normal medium preceding the abnormal medium in the first conveying section is conveyed to the second conveying section, The driving of the second driving source is stopped to stop the first conveying section, and the second conveying section is normal A control unit is provided for transporting the medium to the storage unit and storing the medium therein.

[0010] According to the present invention, normal banknotes are prevented from accumulating in the second transport section, and it is possible to prevent normal banknotes and abnormal banknotes from being mixed in the transport section. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent normal banknotes from being accumulated in the second transport section and to prevent normal and abnormal banknotes from being mixed in the transport section, and thus the present invention can realize a media processing device and a media transaction device that can improve reliability. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of an automated teller machine. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a left side view showing the configuration of the banknote depositing and dispensing machine. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a left side view showing the configuration of the conveying unit. [Figure 4] 13 is a flowchart showing a deposit processing procedure. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a left side view showing the transport path of normal banknotes. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a left side view showing a transport path (1) when a banknote is rejected for deposit. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a left side view showing the transport path (2) when a banknote is rejected for deposit. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a left side view showing the transport path (3) when a banknote is rejected for deposit. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a left side view showing a conveying path (1) when a jammed banknote occurs. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a left side view showing the conveying path (2) when a jammed banknote occurs. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the configuration of a jam removal guidance screen. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0014] [1. Overall structure of an automated teller machine] As shown in Fig. 1, an automated teller machine 1 is composed mainly of a box-shaped housing 2, and is installed in, for example, a financial institution, etc., to carry out cash-related transactions such as deposit transactions and withdrawal transactions with customers. A customer service unit 3 is provided at the front of the housing 2 in a location that allows a customer to easily insert banknotes and operate the touch panel while facing the machine.

[0015] The customer reception section 3 is provided with a card slot 4, a deposit / withdrawal slot 5, an operation display section 6, a numeric keypad 7, and a receipt issuing slot 8, and directly exchanges cash, bankbooks, etc. with customers, and also notifies them of transaction-related information and accepts operation instructions. The card slot 4 is a section where various cards such as cash cards are inserted or ejected. At the back of the card slot 4, a card processing section (not shown) is provided for reading account numbers, etc., magnetically recorded on various cards. The deposit / withdrawal slot 5 is a section where banknotes to be deposited by customers are inserted and where banknotes to be withdrawn to customers are ejected. The deposit / withdrawal slot 5 is opened or closed by driving a shutter. Incidentally, banknotes are made of, for example, rectangular pieces of paper. The operation display section 6 is integrated with an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) that displays an operation screen during a transaction, and a touch panel for selecting the type of transaction and inputting a PIN number, transaction amount, etc. The numeric keypad 7 is a physical key that accepts input of numbers from "0" to "9" and is used when inputting a PIN number, transaction amount, etc. The receipt issuing port 8 is a section that issues a receipt on which the transaction details, etc. are printed when the transaction process is completed. Incidentally, at the back of the receipt issuing port 8, there is provided a receipt processing section (not shown) that prints the transaction details, etc. on the receipt.

[0016] Inside the housing 2, there are provided a main control unit 9 which controls the entire automated teller machine 1, a banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10 which performs various processes related to banknotes, etc. The main control unit 9 is mainly composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) not shown, and performs various processes such as deposit processing and withdrawal processing by reading and executing predetermined programs from a ROM or flash memory not shown. The main control unit 9 also has an internal storage unit made up of a RAM (Random Access Memory), a hard disk drive, a flash memory, etc., and stores various information in this storage unit.

[0017] In the following, the side of the automated teller machine 1 that a customer faces will be referred to as the front side, and the opposite side will be referred to as the rear side, and the left and right sides as seen from a customer facing the front side will be referred to as the left side and right side, respectively, and upper and lower sides will be further defined and explained.

[0018] [2. Configuration of the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine] As shown in Fig. 2, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 incorporates a number of internal sections that perform various processes related to banknotes. The banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 is broadly composed of an upper block 10U that occupies the section above approximately the center in the vertical direction, and a lower block 10L that closes the section below the upper block 10U.

[0019] [2-1. Upper block configuration] The upper block 10U is provided with a banknote control unit 11 which provides overall control, a deposit / withdrawal unit 12 which receives and delivers banknotes to and from customers, a linear transport unit 29 which transports banknotes to each unit, a discrimination unit 14 which discriminates banknotes, a temporary holding unit 15 which temporarily stores banknotes, and a counterfeit banknote vault 18 which stores banknotes which have been discriminated to be counterfeit.

[0020] The banknote control unit 11, like the main control unit 9, is mainly composed of a CPU (not shown), and performs various processes such as determining the transport destination of banknotes and controlling the operation of each unit by reading and executing predetermined programs from a ROM, flash memory, etc. (not shown). The banknote control unit 11 also has an internal memory unit 11M made up of RAM, flash memory, etc., and stores various information in this memory unit 11M.

[0021] The deposit / withdrawal unit 12 is located at the upper front part inside the upper block 10U. This deposit / withdrawal unit 12 has an internal container 12A that stores banknotes deposited by customers and banknotes to be dispensed to customers, and the upper part can be opened and closed by a shutter 12B. Inside the container 12A, a plurality of banknotes are stored in a state where they are stacked with their paper faces facing the front-to-rear direction, i.e., where they are aligned along the front-to-rear direction.

[0022] Further, below and in front of the deposit / withdrawal unit 12, there are provided an intake / discharge unit 12C and a deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D. The intake / discharge unit 12C is composed of a pickup roller 12Cp, a paper feed roller 12Cf, and a separation roller 12Cr. The pickup roller 12Cp is located in front of an intake / discharge port (not shown) that connects the inside of the container 12A to the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D, and can rotate. The paper feed roller 12Cf and the separation roller 12Cr are arranged in pairs in a contacting state at the front and rear sides below the pickup roller 12Cp, and when, for example, multiple bills are withdrawn at the same time, the bills are fed one by one in sequence to the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D located downstream. The intake / discharge unit 12C operates by switching between two operation modes, an intake mode and a discharge mode, based on the control of the banknote control unit 11. That is, in the take-in mode, the take-in / discharge unit 12C rotates the pickup roller 12Cp and the paper feed roller 12Cf counterclockwise in Fig. 2 to separate the banknotes in the container 12A one by one, send them downward at predetermined time intervals, and deliver them to the linear conveyance unit 29 via the deposit / withdrawal conveyance unit 12D. As a result, the linear conveyance unit 29 conveys the banknotes with a predetermined conveyance interval between each other. Also, in the discharge mode, the take-in / discharge unit 12C rotates the pickup roller 12Cp and the paper feed roller 12Cf clockwise in Fig. 2 to discharge the banknotes delivered from the linear conveyance unit 29 via the deposit / withdrawal conveyance unit 12D into the container 12A.

[0023] The counterfeit bill vault 18 is provided near the rear end inside the upper block 10U, directly above and adjacent to the linear transport section 29, and has a space inside for storing bills. When a bill that has been determined to be a counterfeit bill (hereinafter referred to as a counterfeit bill) by the discrimination section 14 and the bill control section 11 (described later) is transported by the linear transport section 29, the counterfeit bill vault 18 stores the bill inside.

[0024] [2-2. Structure of the transport unit] The linear transport section 29 is disposed at the lower end portion inside the upper block 10U, in other words, above the lower block 10L described below. That is, the linear transport section 29 is located so as to cross approximately the center from top to bottom of the entire banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 in the front-to-rear direction, and has a shape that is thin in the vertical direction and elongated in the front-to-rear direction overall. Inside this linear transport section 29, a large number of rotating rollers and guides for guiding banknotes are appropriately arranged, and a linear transport path is formed that transports banknotes mainly along the front-to-rear direction with the short edge direction of the banknote as the travel direction.

[0025] Furthermore, multiple switching units are arranged inside the linear transport unit 29. Each switching unit is composed of a member called a blade (shown as a triangle in the figure) and multiple rollers arranged around it. The blade is long in the left-right direction and is formed in a wedge shape when viewed from the left-right direction, and switches the transport direction of the banknote between two directions by rotating and changing the inclination direction. The rollers are arranged to face each other across the transport path of the banknote. Under the control of the banknote control unit 11, this switching unit changes the inclination direction of the blade according to the transport destination of each banknote and rotates each roller in a predetermined rotation direction, thereby appropriately switching the transport direction of the banknote to transport it to the desired destination.

[0026] On the other hand, as shown in an enlarged view in Figure 3, the linear transport section 29 is broadly composed of a front transport section 21 on the front side, a rear transport section 22 on the rear side, and a temporary hold switching section 20 that connects the two. Hereinafter, the deposit / withdrawal transport section 12D and the front transport section 21 will be collectively referred to as the first transport section 35.

[0027] The escrow switching unit 20 is composed of a blade 20B located at the center, and rollers 20R1, 20R2, and 20R3 located in front of, behind, and above the blade 20B, respectively. The blade 20B rotates to change the inclination angle, like the blades of the above-mentioned switching units, but unlike the other switching units, it is a so-called three-way blade that switches the conveying direction of banknotes in three ways. A third conveying unit 30 is provided between the escrow switching unit 20 and the escrow unit 15.

[0028] Specifically, the temporary hold switching unit 20 switches between forming a conveying path connecting the upper third conveying unit 30 and the front front conveying unit 21, forming a conveying path connecting the upper third conveying unit 30 and the rear rear conveying unit 22, or forming a conveying path connecting the front front conveying unit 21 and the rear rear conveying unit 22.

[0029] The temporary holding unit 15 employs a so-called tape escrow system, in which banknotes are stored by wrapping the banknotes together with tape around the peripheral side of a cylindrical drum, and the banknotes are fed out by peeling the tape off the peripheral side.

[0030] Hereinafter, the deposit / withdrawal transport section 12D, the linear transport section 29 (the front transport section 21, the temporary hold switching section 20, and the rear transport section 22), and the third transport section 30 are collectively referred to as the transport section 13. Travel monitoring sensors (not shown) are arranged at various locations in the transport section 13. The travel monitoring sensors are configured in the same manner as the optical sensors provided in the travel sensors 33 (described later) of the validation section 14, and detect the transport state of the banknotes and send the detection results to the banknote control section 11. In response to this, the banknote control section 11 recognizes the spacing between the transported banknotes, the presence or absence of skew, overlapping of banknotes, length in the transport direction, occurrence of jams, etc.

[0031] Inside the front conveying section 21, from the front, a reject switching section 23, a discrimination section 14 (described in detail later), and a first switching section 24 are arranged in series, and these are connected to each other by relatively short conveying paths, forming an overall linear conveying path that runs along the front-to-rear direction.

[0032] The reject switching unit 23 is configured to switch between two transport paths for banknotes by changing the inclination direction of the blade, and forms a transport path connecting the upper deposit / withdrawal unit 12 and the rear discrimination unit 14, or forms a transport path connecting the rear discrimination unit 14 and the lower reject box 16. The first switching unit 24, like the reject switching unit 23, is configured to switch between two transport paths for banknotes, and forms a transport path connecting the rear short transport path and the lower collection box 19, or forms a transport path connecting the rear short transport path and the front short transport path.

[0033] Inside the rear conveying section 22, a second switching section 25, a third switching section 26, a fourth switching section 27 and a counterfeit banknote switching section 28 are arranged in series from the front, and similarly to the front conveying section 21, these are connected to each other by relatively short conveying paths, thereby forming an overall linear conveying path that runs along the front-to-rear direction.

[0034] The second switching unit 25, the third switching unit 26, and the fourth switching unit 27 are all formed almost symmetrically with the first switching unit 24 in the front-rear direction, and switch the banknote transport path between two different paths. That is, the second switching unit 25, the third switching unit 26, and the fourth switching unit 27 switch between forming a transport path connecting the front short transport path and the lower banknote storage vault 17A, 17B, or 17C, or forming a transport path connecting the front short transport path and the rear short transport path.

[0035] The counterfeit bill switching unit 28 is formed almost symmetrically in the top-bottom direction with the second switching unit 25, the third switching unit 26 and the fourth switching unit 27, and switches between forming a conveying path connecting the front short conveying path and the upper counterfeit bill vault 18, or forming a conveying path connecting the front short conveying path and the banknote storage vault 17D via the rear short conveying path.

[0036] [2-3. Drive source configuration] Incidentally, the rollers of the take-in / discharge section 12C, the rollers of the deposit / withdrawal transport section 12D, the rollers of the front transport section 21, the rollers of the rear transport section 22, and the rollers constituting the temporary storage switching section 20 receive driving force from dedicated motors M1, M2, and M3 that are controlled independently of each other for each region partitioned by drive boundaries B1 and B2 in Fig. 3. These motors M1, M2, and M3 are attached near the rollers to which the driving force is transmitted, that is, inside the take-in / discharge section 12C, the front transport section 21, and the rear transport section 22, respectively. Incidentally, the third transport section 30 transports banknotes by rotating roller 20R3 of the temporary storage switching section 20.

[0037] That is, motor M1 drives pickup roller 12Cp, paper feed roller 12Cf, and separation roller 12Cr (FIG. 2) of take-in / discharge section 12C. Motor M2 drives each roller of deposit / withdrawal conveyance section 12D, each roller of front conveyance section 21, roller 20R1 of temporary storage switching section 20, and roller 20R3 of temporary storage switching section 20. Motor M3 drives each roller of rear conveyance section 22, and roller 20R2 of temporary storage switching section 20.

[0038] Therefore, in the take-in / discharge section 12C and the transport section 13, the motors M1, M2 and M3 are each independently controlled by the banknote control section 11, so that the take-in / discharge section 12C, the section between the take-in / discharge section 12C and the front side of the blade 20B of the temporary storage switching section 20, the third transport section 30 and the section behind the blade 20B of the temporary storage switching section 20 can be driven independently of each other, and banknotes can be transported independently of each other.

[0039] Furthermore, the motors M1, M2 and M3 are, for example, stepping motors or DC (Direct Current) brushless motors, and the rotation angles of these motors can be precisely controlled by the banknote control unit 11. For this reason, the banknote control unit 11 knows the exact number of rotations and rotation angles of the motors M1, M2 and M3, and also knows the number of rotations and rotation angle of each roller, i.e., the transport distance of the banknote, by performing calculation processing such as multiplying these by a predetermined coefficient.

[0040] In this way, the linear conveying unit 29, by using the front conveying unit 21, the temporary storage switching unit 20 and the rear conveying unit 22, forms a linear conveying path along the front-to-rear direction, which is the alignment direction in which the banknote storage vaults 17 are aligned, and conveys banknotes mainly in the front-to-rear direction along this conveying path, while switching the conveying path using multiple switching units.

[0041] [2-4. Composition of the Identification Department] The validator 14 has multiple types of sensors built in, recognizes the denomination, authenticity, fitness (damaged or not) and conveyance status of the conveyed banknotes, and sends the recognition results to the banknote controller 11. The conveyance status here refers to, for example, whether the banknote is tilted with respect to the conveyance direction (i.e., whether skew has occurred), whether the intervals between conveyed banknotes are appropriate, whether multiple banknotes are overlapping (i.e., whether double feeding or chain reaction has occurred), etc.

[0042] Specifically, inside the verification section 14, a conveying path is formed that connects the front delivery port at the front and the rear delivery port at the rear in a straight line along the front-to-rear direction, and along this conveying path, an authenticity sensor 31, an image sensor 32 and a travel sensor 33 are arranged in order from the front.

[0043] The authenticity sensor 31 is, for example, a magnetic sensor, which detects the magnetism of the banknotes transported on the transport path and sends the detection result to the banknote control unit 11. Based on the detection result supplied from the authenticity sensor 31, the banknote control unit 11 judges whether the banknote is genuine (a so-called genuine note) or counterfeit (a so-called fake note).

[0044] The image sensor 32 has two imaging elements facing each other across the transport path. These imaging elements capture images of both sides of the banknotes transported along the transport path to generate image data, and send these to the banknote control unit 11. The banknote control unit 11 compares the supplied image data with pre-stored image data for each denomination to recognize the denomination and degree of damage of each banknote, and further recognizes the individual serial number written on each banknote.

[0045] The travel sensor 33 has, for example, a thickness sensor and an optical sensor. The thickness sensor detects the thickness of the transported banknote and supplies the detection result to the banknote control unit 11. Based on the detection result supplied from the thickness sensor, the banknote control unit 11 judges whether the thickness of the transported banknote corresponds to one banknote or two or more banknotes.

[0046] The optical sensor, for example, is arranged such that a light-emitting element that emits light and a light-receiving element that receives the light face each other across the transport path, detects whether or not light is blocked by banknotes transported along the transport path, and sends the detection result to the banknote control unit 11. The travel sensor 33 also has multiple optical sensors arranged in the left-right direction, i.e., along a direction intersecting the front-rear direction that is the transport direction. Based on the detection results supplied from the optical sensors and their changes over time, the banknote control unit 11 recognizes the length of the transported banknotes along the transport direction, the spacing between banknotes along the transport direction, and the inclination of the banknotes with respect to the transport direction.

[0047] In other words, the travel sensor 33 supplies the detection results of the thickness sensor and each optical sensor to the banknote control unit 11, thereby allowing the banknote control unit 11 to recognize the banknote transport state, such as the spacing between banknotes, whether or not the banknotes are inclined relative to the transport direction (so-called skew), and whether or not the banknotes are overlapping (so-called double feeding or chaining), etc.

[0048] In addition, the discrimination unit 14 is installed inside the front transport unit 21 so that the distance between the discrimination unit 14 and the temporary hold switching unit 20 is extremely short.

[0049] [2-5. Configuration of the lower block] As shown in FIG. 2, the lower block 10L is provided with a reject box 16 for storing banknotes that should not be reused, four banknote storage boxes 17 (17A, 17B, 17C, and 17D) for storing reusable banknotes, and a recovery box 19 for storing banknotes that should not be reused but should be stored in a box other than the reject box 16.

[0050] The rejected banknote vault 16 is located at the front and uppermost position inside the lower block 10L, is formed as a rectangular parallelepiped that is long in the vertical direction, and has a space inside for accumulating and storing banknotes. The vertical length of the rejected banknote vault 16 is about half that of the lower block 10L. When a banknote that has been determined by the validator 14 and banknote controller 11 to be too damaged to be reused is transported by the linear transport unit 29, the rejected banknote vault 16 stores the banknote inside.

[0051] A collection box 19 is provided behind the reject box 16 inside the lower block 10L. The collection box 19 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape that is long in the vertical direction, and has a space inside for accumulating and storing banknotes. When a banknote that has been determined not to be reused and should be stored somewhere other than the reject box 16 is transported by the linear transport unit 29, the collection box 19 stores the banknote inside.

[0052] Behind the recovery box 19 inside the lower block 10L, banknote storage boxes 17A, 17B, 17C, and 17D are arranged in order from the front to the rear along the alignment direction, which is the front-to-rear direction. Each banknote storage box 17 (17A, 17B, 17C, and 17D) is configured in the same way, is formed into a rectangular parallelepiped shape that is long in the vertical direction, and has a space inside for accumulating and storing banknotes. Incidentally, the vertical length of the banknote storage box 17 is approximately the same as that of the lower block 10L.

[0053] The denomination of banknotes to be stored is preset in each banknote storage vault 17. When banknotes that have been determined by the validator 14 and banknote controller 11 to be less damaged and therefore reusable are transported by the linear transport unit 29 according to their denominations, the banknote storage vault 17 accumulates and stores the banknotes inside. Furthermore, when the banknote storage vault 17 receives an instruction from the banknote controller 11 to feed banknotes, it separates the accumulated banknotes one by one, feeds them, and hands them over to the linear transport unit 29.

[0054] Incidentally, under the control of the banknote control unit 11, the banknote storage vault 17 can operate as a dispensing vault that only dispenses stored banknotes, or as a deposit vault that only stores transported banknotes.

[0055] The lower block 10L is covered on all its peripheral sides by a sturdy safe housing 10S. This safe housing 10S is provided, for example, on the rear side with an openable door and a lock that maintains the closed state (neither shown), and each part in the lower block 10L can be accessed only when the lock is unlocked and the door is opened.

[0056] The linear transport unit 29 is located above the lower block 10L, that is, outside the safe housing 10S. Therefore, the front transport unit 21, the temporary storage switching unit 20, and the rear transport unit 22 of the linear transport unit 29 are arranged from the front to the rear on the upper side of the safe housing 10S, forming a linear transport path along the front-to-rear direction. In addition, slit-shaped elongated through holes are formed on the upper surface of the safe housing 10S between the linear transport unit 29 and the reject box 16, each banknote storage box 17, and the recovery box 19. The linear transport unit 29 can transfer banknotes in the vertical direction between the reject box 16, each banknote storage box 17, and the recovery box 19 through the through holes of the safe housing 10S.

[0057] Furthermore, a storage container travel monitoring sensor 34 that detects transported banknotes is disposed in a cassette transfer section between the through-hole, the reject container 16, each banknote storage container 17, and the collection container 19, where banknotes are transferred between the linear transport section 29 and the reject container 16, each banknote storage container 17, and the collection container 19. The storage container travel monitoring sensor 34 is configured similarly to the optical sensor provided in the travel sensor 33 of the validation section 14, and detects the transport state of the banknotes and sends the detection result to the banknote control section 11. The banknote control section 11 judges whether or not the banknotes have been stored in each banknote storage container 17 based on the detection result provided by the storage container travel monitoring sensor 34.

[0058] [3. Deposit Processing] Next, a deposit processing procedure when a customer (user) deposits banknotes into the automated teller machine 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in Fig. 4. In the deposit processing, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 performs a deposit process of banknotes by direct deposit based on the control of the banknote control unit 11.

[0059] Specifically, when the banknote control unit 11 receives an operation input from a customer via the operation and display unit 6 (FIG. 1) to start a deposit process, the banknote control unit 11 reads out a deposit process program from the memory unit 11M and executes it to start the deposit process procedure RT1 shown in FIG. 4, and then proceeds to step SP1. In step SP1, the banknote control unit 11 opens the shutter 12B of the deposit / withdrawal unit 12 to insert banknotes into the container 12A. Next, when the banknote control unit 11 receives an operation input via the operation and display unit 6 to start taking in banknotes, it closes the shutter 12B and drives the motor M1 to operate the take-in / discharge unit 12C in the take-in mode, and drives the transport unit 13. Specifically, the banknote control unit 11 drives the motor M2 to rotate the rollers of the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D, the rollers of the front transport unit 21, and the rollers 20R1 and 20R3 of the escrow switching unit 20, and further drives the motor M3 to rotate the rollers of the rear transport unit 22 and the roller 20R2 of the escrow switching unit 20. As a result, the banknote control unit 11 drives the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D, the straight transport unit 29, and the third transport unit 30 in the downstream transport direction which is the direction in which the banknotes are directed from the deposit / withdrawal unit 12 to the banknote storage vault 17 or the escrow unit 15, and separates and takes in the banknotes in the container 12A one by one by the take-in and release unit 12C, and sequentially delivers them to the front transport unit 21 of the straight transport unit 29 via the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D located downstream, and proceeds to step SP2. At this time, the banknote control unit 11 also switches the escrow switching unit 20 to form a transport path connecting the front transport unit 21 and the rear transport unit 22.

[0060] Incidentally, the take-in and discharge unit 12C delivers the banknotes to the front conveyance unit 21 of the linear conveyance unit 29 located downstream in a state in which the short sides of the banknotes are approximately parallel to the conveyance direction and the long sides are approximately perpendicular to the conveyance direction. The take-in and discharge unit 12C also takes in and pays out the banknotes at predetermined time intervals, thereby providing a predetermined conveyance interval between the banknotes conveyed by the front conveyance unit 21.

[0061] The front conveying section 21 switches the reject switching section 23 to form a conveying path connecting the deposit / withdrawal section 12 and the rear validation section 14, and sequentially delivers banknotes BL to the front front delivery port in the downstream validation section 14, as indicated by arrow Q1 in Figure 5.

[0062] In step SP2, the banknote control unit 11 passes the banknotes BL to the validation unit 14 as shown by arrow Q1, and proceeds to step SP3. The validation unit 14 transports the banknotes BL rearward inside, while successively validating each banknote BL using the authenticity sensor 31, image sensor 32 and travel sensor 33. The validation unit 14 then passes the banknote BL from the rear delivery port again to the front transport unit 21, and sends the validation result to the banknote control unit 11.

[0063] The banknote control unit 11 first judges the degree of damage, denomination, or authenticity of each banknote BL based on the validation results obtained from the validation unit 14. Next, the banknote control unit 11 judges each banknote BL as a deposit-rejected banknote that can be recognized as a normal banknote BL and can continue with subsequent processing, or as an abnormal banknote that cannot be recognized as a normal banknote BL and should be returned to the customer. In many cases, for example, folded banknotes BL, banknotes BL with many wrinkles, or paper other than banknotes BL (such as memo paper or receipts) that has been mistakenly inserted into the deposit / withdrawal unit 12 are judged as deposit-rejected banknotes, and banknotes BL that are normal but have, for example, become skewed during travel are judged as deposit-rejected banknotes.

[0064] Furthermore, the banknote control unit 11 determines the final transport destination of deposited and accepted banknotes to be the rejected vault 16 for rejected banknotes with a high degree of damage, the banknote storage vaults 17 for each denomination for normal banknotes that are normal and reusable, and the counterfeit banknote vault 18 for counterfeit banknotes. Furthermore, the banknote control unit 11 stores the denomination, serial number, transport state (i.e. skew and spacing between banknotes BL) of each banknote BL, as well as the determined transport destination, etc., in the memory unit 11M in association with the transport order of the banknotes BL.

[0065] In step SP3, the banknote control unit 11 judges whether the banknote BL is a normal banknote based on the validation result. If a positive result is obtained here, the banknote control unit 11 proceeds to step SP4. At this time, the front-side transport unit 21 forms a transport path connecting the rear short transport path and the front short transport path by the first switching unit 24, transports normal banknotes BLc delivered from the rear delivery port of the validation unit 14 located upstream backward, and delivers them sequentially to the temporary holding switching unit 20 located downstream of the validation unit 14.

[0066] In step SP4, the banknote control unit 11 switches the temporary holding switching unit 20 to form a transport path connecting the front transport unit 21 and the rear transport unit 22, thereby switching the transport destination of the normal banknotes BLc to the rear transport unit 22, and as shown by arrow Q1, forms a transport path connecting the front transport unit 21 and the rear transport unit 22 and causes the normal banknotes BLc to proceed into the rear transport unit 22. Next, the banknote control unit 11 appropriately switches the second switching unit 25, the third switching unit 26, the fourth switching unit 27 and the counterfeit note switching unit 28, transports all the normal banknotes BLc by denomination to the banknote storage vault 17 for accumulation, proceeds to step SP16, and ends the deposit processing procedure RT1.

[0067] On the other hand, if a negative result is obtained in step SP3, this indicates that there is a possibility that a banknote has been rejected for deposit or a jammed banknote has occurred, and in this case the banknote control unit 11 proceeds to step SP5. In step SP5, the banknote control unit 11 determines based on the validation result whether the banknote BL is a banknote that is rejected for deposit or whether a jammed banknote has occurred in the process of transporting the banknote BL. If it is determined here that a banknote has been rejected for deposit, then the banknote control unit 11 proceeds to step SP6.

[0068] In step SP6, the banknote control unit 11 stops the motor M1 to stop the intake / discharge unit 12C, and switches the temporary hold switching unit 20 to form a conveying path connecting the front conveying unit 21 and the third conveying unit 30, thereby switching the destination of the deposited-rejected banknote BLr to the third conveying unit 30, and forms a conveying path connecting the front conveying unit 21 and the third conveying unit 30 as shown by arrow Q2 in Figure 6, and transports the banknote BLr into the third conveying unit 30 to just before the temporary hold unit 15, and then proceeds to step SP7.

[0069] In step SP7, the banknote control unit 11 stops the motor M2, thereby stopping the rollers of the first transport unit 35 and the third transport unit 30 (i.e., the rollers of the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D, the rollers of the front transport unit 21, and the rollers 20R1 and 20R3 of the temporary storage switching unit 20), and proceeds to step SP8. At this time, the banknote control unit 11 does not stop the driving of the motor M3, and transports and accumulates normal banknotes BLc on the rear transport unit 22 to the banknote storage vault 17 according to denomination, as indicated by arrow Q3 in Fig. 7.

[0070] In step SP8, the banknote control unit 11 waits until all normal banknotes BLc on the rear transport unit 22 have been transported to the banknote storage vault 17, and then proceeds to step SP9. In step SP9, the banknote control unit 11 stops the motor M3, thereby stopping the rollers of the rear transport unit 22, and then proceeds to step SP10.

[0071] In step SP10, the banknote control unit 11 drives motor M1 to operate the take-in / discharge unit 12C in discharge mode, and drives motor M2 to rotate the rollers of the first conveying unit 35 and the third conveying unit 30 (i.e., the rollers of the deposit / withdrawal conveying unit 12D, the rollers of the front conveying unit 21, and the rollers 20R1 and 20R3 of the temporary hold switching unit 20). As a result, the banknote control unit 11 drives the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D, the front transport unit 21 and the third transport unit 30 in the upstream transport direction opposite to the downstream transport direction, and releases the banknote BL into the container 12A using the input / output unit 12C, thereby returning the deposited-rejected banknote BLr on the third transport unit 30 and the banknotes BL following the deposited-rejected banknote BLr on the front transport unit 21 and the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D in the opposite direction to that in the case of deposit processing, as shown by arrow Q4 in Figure 8, back into the container 12A, and then proceeds to step SP16, completing the deposit processing procedure RT1.

[0072] On the other hand, if it is determined in step SP5 that a jammed banknote has occurred, then the banknote control unit 11 proceeds to step SP11. Here, the jammed banknote is a banknote that has become stuck on the transport path. In this embodiment, it is assumed that a jammed banknote BLj, which is an abnormal banknote shown in Fig. 9, has occurred in the intake / discharge unit 12C, the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D, the front transport unit 21, the escrow switching unit 20 or the third transport unit 30 other than the rear transport unit 22. Fig. 9 shows a case in which a jammed banknote BLj has occurred in the front transport unit 21.

[0073] In step SP11, the banknote control unit 11 stops the motor M1 to stop the take-in and discharge unit 12C, but does not stop the driving of motors M2 and M3, and waits until the end portion of the normal banknote BLc preceding the jammed banknote BLj passes the blade 20B of the temporary storage switching unit 20 and enters the rear transport unit 22, then moves to step SP12. In this way, the banknote control unit 11 transports all of the normal banknotes BLc on the front transport unit 21 to the rear transport unit 22, despite the possibility that the jammed banknote BLj itself may become further clogged in the transport path.

[0074] In step SP12, the banknote control unit 11 stops the motor M2, thereby stopping the rollers of the first transport unit 35 and the third transport unit 30 (i.e. the rollers of the deposit / withdrawal transport unit 12D, the rollers of the front transport unit 21, and the rollers 20R1 and 20R3 of the temporary storage switching unit 20), thereby preventing the jammed banknote BLj from being transported any further, and proceeds to step SP13. At this time, the banknote control unit 11 does not stop the driving of the motor M3, and transports and accumulates normal banknotes BLc on the rear transport unit 22 to the banknote storage vault 17 according to denomination, as indicated by arrow Q6 in Fig. 10.

[0075] In step SP13, the banknote control unit 11 waits until all normal banknotes BLc on the rear transport unit 22 have been transported to the banknote storage vault 17, and then proceeds to step SP14. In step SP14, the banknote control unit 11 stops the motor M3, thereby stopping the rollers of the rear transport unit 22, and then proceeds to step SP15.

[0076] In step SP15, the banknote control unit 11 displays the jam removal guidance screen DIP shown in FIG. 11 on the operation display unit 6 (FIG. 1) serving as a guidance unit, thereby instructing the attendant to remove the jammed banknote BLj from inside the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10, and then proceeds to step SP16, ending the deposit processing procedure RT1.

[0077] In this jam removal guidance screen DIP, the jammed banknote removal location RBLj, which is a location where a jam may occur, is highlighted in a different color from the other locations in the transport section 13 other than the jammed banknote removal location RBLj, as shown by a thick line in Fig. 11. The banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 prevents the jammed banknote BLj from reaching the rear transport section 22, transports all normal banknotes BLc preceding the jammed banknote BLj to the banknote storage vault 17, and accumulates them, and then displays this jam removal guidance screen DIP. Therefore, at the time when the jam removal guidance screen DIP is displayed, the jammed banknote BLj does not exist in the rear transport section 22 (more specifically, the range from the temporary storage switching section 20 to the cassette transfer section). As a result, in the jam removal guidance screen DIP, the first transport section 35 and the third transport section 30 are highlighted, and the range from the temporary storage switching section 20 to the cassette transfer section is displayed excluding the jammed banknote removal location RBLj.

[0078] [4. Effects, etc.] Conventionally, in the case of an automated teller machine that does not perform direct deposit, in a deposit transaction, first, the number of deposited banknotes is counted while identifying the denomination, etc., of the banknotes, and a deposit counting process is performed in which the banknotes before the deposit is confirmed are stored in a temporary storage section, and then, once the deposit is confirmed, a deposit storage process is performed in which the banknotes are transported from the temporary storage section to a banknote storage vault and stored. Therefore, when an abnormal banknote such as a deposit-rejected banknote or a jammed banknote occurs, the automated teller machine stores normal banknotes before the deposit is confirmed in the temporary storage section, while if the abnormal banknote is a deposit-rejected banknote, it returns the deposit-rejected banknote to the deposit / withdrawal section.

[0079] In contrast, in the case of an automated teller machine that performs direct deposit, banknotes before the deposit is confirmed in a deposit transaction are transported to a banknote storage vault and stored there. Therefore, when abnormal banknotes such as a rejected banknote or a jammed banknote occur, normal banknotes are present in the transport section between the validation section and the banknote storage vault ahead of the abnormal banknotes. In such a situation, if all the banknotes on the transport section are returned to the deposit / withdrawal section, normal banknotes and abnormal banknotes will be mixed together, and even though the banknotes have been validated as normal, the normal banknotes will be returned to the deposit / withdrawal section together with the abnormal banknotes.

[0080] In addition, when an abnormal banknote occurs and the transport unit stops, a banknote that is partially present on the transport unit but is in the process of entering the banknote storage vault may be detected by the storage vault travel monitoring sensor and may be counted as having already been stored in the banknote storage vault. Therefore, if all the banknotes on the transport unit were returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit in such a situation, banknotes that were recognized as having been stored in the banknote storage vault may be returned to the deposit / withdrawal unit, which could result in an erroneous count.

[0081] In response to this, when an abnormal banknote occurs in the front transport section 21 during direct deposit, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 stops the take-in / release section 12C, the deposit and withdrawal transport section 12D, the front transport section 21, and the third transport section 30, but does not stop the second transport section, and waits until all normal banknotes BLc present on the rear transport section 22 preceding the abnormal banknotes are stored in the banknote storage vault 17. This prevents normal banknotes BLc from accumulating in the rear transport section 22, and prevents normal banknotes BLc and abnormal banknotes from being mixed together. This allows the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 to prevent normal banknotes BLc from being returned and to prevent erroneous counting, thereby improving reliability.

[0082] In the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10, in order to complete the deposit process in as short a time as possible, the straight-line transport section 29 transports the banknote BL at as high a speed as possible, and the discriminating section 14 is disposed inside the front transport section 21 so as to be extremely close to the escrow switching section 20. For this reason, if the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 determines that the banknote BL is a deposit-rejected banknote BLr and then stops the front transport section 21 with the escrow switching section 20 forming a transport path connecting the front transport section 21 and the rear transport section 22, the deposit-rejected banknote BLr will not remain in the front transport section 21 but will enter the rear transport section 22. If the rear transport section 22 continues to be driven in this state, there is a possibility that the deposit-rejected banknote BLr will be stored in the banknote storage vault 17.

[0083] In response to this, in the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10, when the abnormal banknote is a deposit-rejected banknote BLr, the temporary storage switching unit 20 is switched to a state in which a transport path is formed connecting the front transport unit 21 and the third transport unit 30. As a result, the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10 can evacuate the deposit-rejected banknote BLr from the front transport unit 21 to the third transport unit 30. In this way, the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10 can speed up the deposit process while preventing the deposit-rejected banknote BLr from reaching the front transport unit 21 to the rear transport unit 22, and preventing the deposit-rejected banknote BLr from being stored in the banknote storage vault 17.

[0084] Furthermore, the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10 waits until all normal banknotes BLc present on the rear transport section 22 have been stored in the banknote storage vault 17, and then drives the deposit / withdrawal transport section 12D, the front transport section 21 and the third transport section 30 in the upstream transport direction to transport the deposit-rejected banknotes BLr to the deposit / withdrawal section 12. This allows the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10 to return the deposit-rejected banknotes BLr to the customer.

[0085] Furthermore, when the abnormal banknote is a jammed banknote BLj, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 waits until the end portion of a normal banknote BLc preceding the jammed banknote BLj passes the blade 20B of the temporary storage switching unit 20 and enters the rear transport unit 22, and then stops the deposit and withdrawal transport unit 12D, the front transport unit 21 and the third transport unit 30. Therefore, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 can store all normal banknotes BLc that have already been validated in the banknote storage vault 17 by continuing to drive the rear transport unit 22 thereafter.

[0086] Furthermore, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 is configured to display a jam removal guidance screen DIP (FIG. 11) on the operation display unit 6 (FIG. 1). Therefore, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 can guide the clerk to remove the jammed banknote BLj from any of the jammed banknote removal points RBLj.

[0087] In addition to these, the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10 of the automated teller machine 1 is configured so that the deposit / withdrawal section 12, the validation section 14, the temporary holding section 15, the reject vault 16, the banknote storage vault 17 and the counterfeit banknote vault 18 are each connected to a linear conveying section 29 formed in a straight line along the front-to-rear direction.

[0088] From another perspective, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 is configured such that the linear transport section 29 forms a linear transport path that passes through the validation section 14, and the deposit and withdrawal section 12 and the reject vault 16 are arranged on one side (e.g., the front side) of the transport path of the validation section 14, and the temporary holding section 15 and the banknote storage vault 17 are arranged on the other side (e.g., the rear side) of the transport path. In other words, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 connects, to both ends of the transport path that passes through the validation section 14, transport paths in which one or more switching sections are connected in series.

[0089] From a further different perspective, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 is configured to use the escrow switching unit 20 to switch between two of the transport path toward the deposit and withdrawal unit 12, the transport path toward the banknote storage vault 17, and the transport path toward the escrow unit 15, so as to connect them to each other. In addition, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 has the validation unit 14 disposed on the transport path toward the deposit and withdrawal unit 12, and connects the reject vault 16 via the reject switching unit 23 to the transport path on the deposit and withdrawal unit 12 side as viewed from the validation unit 14.

[0090] As a result, in the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10, the transport path in the linear transport section 29 is straight rather than loop-shaped, which makes it possible to simplify the configuration compared to conventional banknote deposit / withdrawal machines, reduce the size and number of parts, and thereby reduce the frequency of malfunctions and labor-saving maintenance work.

[0091] According to the above-mentioned configuration, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 of the automated teller machine 1 comprises: a deposit and withdrawal unit 12 into which banknotes BL as a medium are inserted; an intake and discharge unit 12C driven by a motor M1 as a first drive source and feeding out banknotes BL from the deposit and withdrawal unit 12; a first transport unit 35 connected to the deposit and withdrawal unit 12 and driven by a motor M2 as a second drive source driven independently of the motor M1 and transporting the banknotes BL; a discrimination unit 14 provided in the first transport unit 35 and discriminating the transported banknotes BL; and a third drive source connected to the first transport unit 35 and driven independently of the motors M1 and M2. a rear conveying section 22 driven by a motor M3 as a conveyor and conveying the banknotes BL; a banknote storage vault 17 connected to the rear conveying section 22 and storing normal banknotes BLc; and a banknote control section 11 which, when it is determined that there is an abnormal banknote in the first conveying section 35, such as a deposit-rejected banknote BLr or a jammed banknote BLj, which is an abnormal medium, stops the driving of the motor M1 to stop the take-in and discharge section 12C and stops the driving of the motor M2 to stop the first conveying section 35, and conveys the normal banknote BLc present in the rear conveying section 22 to the banknote storage vault 17 for storage therein.

[0092] This allows the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 to prevent normal banknotes BLc from accumulating in the rear transport section 22, and to prevent normal banknotes BLc and abnormal banknotes from being mixed in the transport section 13.

[0093] 5. Other embodiments In the above embodiment, the rollers of the deposit / withdrawal transport section 12D, the rollers of the front transport section 21, and the rollers 20R1 and 20R3 of the temporary storage switching section 20 are driven by the motor M2. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the rollers of the deposit / withdrawal transport section 12D, the rollers of the front transport section 21, and the roller 20R1 in the temporary storage switching section 20 may be driven by the motor M2, and the roller 20R3 in the temporary storage switching section 20 may be driven by a motor different from the motor M2. In short, it is sufficient that at least the drive source that drives the intake / discharge section 12C, the drive source that drives the front transport section 21, and the drive source that drives the rear transport section 22 are driven independently of each other.

[0094] Also, in the above-described embodiment, a case has been described in which the deposit-rejected banknotes BLr are evacuated from the front transport section 21 to the third transport section 30. The present invention is not limited to this, and although there is a possibility that the front-to-rear length of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 may become longer, if it is possible to extend the front-to-rear length of the portion of the front transport section 21 rearward of the discrimination section 14 to such an extent that the deposit-rejected banknotes BLr on the front transport section 21 do not reach the rear transport section 22 when the motor M2 is stopped and the front transport section 21 is stopped, and thereby widen the space between the discrimination section 14 and the rear transport section 22, then it is not necessary to hold the deposit-rejected banknotes BLr in the front transport section 21 and evacuate them from the front transport section 21 to the third transport section 30.

[0095] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the motors M1, M2, and M3 are attached near the rollers to which the driving force is transmitted, that is, inside the intake / discharge section 12C, the front conveying section 21, and the rear conveying section 22. The present invention is not limited to this, and the motor M2 may be disposed at any position, such as inside the front conveying section 21 or outside the linear conveying section 29, and the driving force may be transmitted from the motor M2 to the rollers in the rear conveying section 22 via gears (not shown). Furthermore, for example, the motors M2 and M3 may be omitted and a clutch mechanism (not shown) or a gear with a different number of teeth may be appropriately combined to transmit the driving force from the motor M1 to the rollers in the front conveying section 21 and the rear conveying section 22, and the conveyance of the banknotes BL may be controlled independently in the front conveying section 21 and the rear conveying section 22.

[0096] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the jam removal guidance screen DIP (FIG. 11) is displayed on the operation display unit 6 (FIG. 1) to guide the clerk to remove the jammed banknote BLj from one of the jammed banknote removal locations RBLj. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the location where the jammed banknote BLj is present may be guided by various other guidance units, such as guidance by voice or guidance by an LED or the like provided in the housing 2.

[0097] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the travel sensor 33 is configured by a thickness sensor and an optical sensor, and the banknote control unit 11 recognizes the presence or absence of double feeding, the skew of each banknote BL, and the interval between the banknotes BL based on the detection results of each sensor. The present invention is not limited to this, and the travel sensor may be configured by various other sensors. The point is that it is sufficient to detect whether each banknote BL is a deposit-reject banknote in the deposit process.

[0098] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the escrow switching unit 20 that switches the transport path so as to transport deposit-rejected banknotes BLr from the straight transport unit 29 to the escrow unit 15 is disposed between the first switching unit 24 and the second switching unit 25, and the straight transport unit 29 is divided into a front transport unit 21 on the front side and a rear transport unit 22 on the rear side by the escrow switching unit 20. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the escrow switching unit 20 may be disposed at another position inside the straight transport unit 29.

[0099] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the linear transport section 29 is roughly divided into the front transport section 21, the escrow switching section 20, and the rear transport section 22. The present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the linear transport section 29 may be divided into a plurality of sections in various ways, or may be a single linear transport section 29 without dividing them. However, it is preferable that at least the rollers of the intake / discharge section 12C that takes in or discharges the banknotes BL to the deposit / withdrawal section 12, the rollers for transporting the banknotes BL in front of the escrow switching section 20, and the rollers for transporting the banknotes BL in the rear of the escrow switching section 20 can be driven independently of each other. This allows the transport section 13 to transport normal banknotes BLc from the rear transport section 22 to the banknote storage vault 17 when an abnormal banknote occurs, while holding the abnormal banknote in the front transport section 21 or the third transport section 30.

[0100] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the case has been described where the validator 14 is provided with three types of sensors, namely the authenticity sensor 31, the image sensor 32 and the travel sensor 33. The present invention is not limited to this, and the validator 14 may be provided with two or less types of sensors or four or more types of sensors. Furthermore, various sensors may be provided not only in the validator 14 but also on the front transport unit 21 to distinguish between banknotes that are rejected for deposit and jammed banknotes in the banknote control unit 11. In short, it is sufficient if the banknote control unit 11 can determine whether each banknote is normal or rejected for deposit at least in the deposit process based on the obtained detection results and determine the transport destination.

[0101] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 is provided with four banknote storage vaults 17 (17A to 17D). The present invention is not limited to this, and three or less or five or more banknote storage vaults 17 may be provided. For example, when three banknote storage vaults 17 are provided, the front-to-rear length of the automated teller machine 1 can be significantly shortened, which is suitable for installation in a place with limited installation space such as a convenience store.

[0102] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the case has been described where the detection results of the sensors in the validator 14 are sent to the banknote control unit 11, and the banknote control unit 11 recognizes the denomination, authenticity, degree of damage, etc. of the banknote BL and then determines the destination of the banknote BL. The present invention is not limited to this. For example, the validator 14 may be provided with a dedicated validation control unit, and the detection results of the sensors in the validator 14 may be sent to the validation control unit to cause the validation control unit to recognize the denomination, authenticity, degree of damage, etc. of the banknote BL. In this case, the banknote control unit 11 may determine the destination of the banknote BL by sending information indicating the denomination, authenticity, degree of damage, etc. recognized by the validation control unit to the banknote control unit 11. This reduces the processing load on the banknote control unit 11.

[0103] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, a case has been described in which various processes such as deposit processing are executed by the banknote control unit 11 of the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and each process may be executed by, for example, the main control unit 9 (FIG. 1) of the automated teller machine 1, or by having the main control unit 9 and the banknote control unit 11 work together.

[0104] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to the banknote deposit and withdrawal machine 10 of the automated teller machine 1 which processes transactions related to banknotes with customers. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to various devices which handle cash, such as a deposit-only machine used in the back yard of a store, or a cash processing device used by bank employees in the back yard or at the foot of a teller, or various devices which handle various paper-like media such as various coupons, securities, or admission tickets and train tickets.

[0105] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments and other embodiments. In other words, the scope of application of the present invention also extends to embodiments in which the above-mentioned embodiments and part or all of the above-mentioned other embodiments are arbitrarily combined. The scope of application of the present invention also extends to cases in which a part of the configuration described in any of the above-mentioned embodiments and other embodiments is extracted and replaced or diverted with a part of the configuration of any of the above-mentioned embodiments and other embodiments, or a part of the extracted configuration is added to any of the embodiments.

[0106] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, a case has been described in which the banknote deposit / withdrawal machine 10 as the medium processing device and the automated teller machine 1 as the medium transaction device are configured by the deposit / withdrawal unit 12 as the deposit unit, the take-in / release unit 12C as the pay-out unit, the first transport unit 35 as the first transport unit, the discrimination unit 14 as the discrimination unit, the rear transport unit 22 as the second transport unit, the banknote storage vault 17 as the storage vault, and the banknote control unit 11 as the control unit. The present invention is not limited to this, and the medium processing device and the medium transaction device may be configured by a deposit unit, a pay-out unit, a first transport unit, a discrimination unit, a second transport unit, a storage vault, and a control unit having various other configurations. [Industrial Applicability]

[0107] The present invention can also be used in an automated teller machine or the like that processes transactions related to depositing and dispensing paper money with customers. [Explanation of symbols]

[0108] 1...automated teller machine, 2...casing, 3...customer service section, 4...card slot, 5...deposit / withdrawal port, 6...operation display section, 7...numeric keypad, 8...receipt issuing port, 9...main control section, 10...banknote deposit / withdrawal machine, 10U...upper block, 10L...lower block, 10S...safe housing, 11...banknote control section, 11M...storage section, 12...deposit / withdrawal section, 12A...container, 12B...shutter, 12C...take-in / release section, 12Cp...pickup roller, 12Cf...paper feed roller, 12Cr...separation roller, 12D...deposit / withdrawal transport section, 13...transport section, 14...discrimination section, 15...temporary holding section, 16...reject box, 17...banknote storage box, 18...counterfeit bill box , 19...Collection box, 20...Temporary hold switching section, 20R1, 20R2, 20R3...Rollers, 21...Front conveying section, 22...Rear conveying section, 23...Reject switching section, 24...First switching section, 25...Second switching section, 26...Third switching section, 27...Fourth switching section, 28...Counterfeit note switching section, 29...Straight conveying section, 30...Third conveying section, 31...Authenticity sensor, 32...Image sensor, 33...Travel sensor, 34...Storage box travel monitoring sensor, 35...First conveying section, M1, M2, M3...Motor, BL...Banknote, BLc...Normal banknote, BLr...Deposit rejected banknote, BLj...Jammed banknote, DIP...Jammed note removal guidance screen, RBLj...Jammed note removal point.

Claims

1. a deposit section into which media is inserted; a feeding unit driven by a first driving source and feeding the medium from the deposit unit; a first transport unit that is connected to the deposit unit and driven by a second drive source that drives independently of the first drive source, and transports the medium; a discrimination unit provided in the first transport unit and configured to discriminate the medium being transported; a second transport unit that is connected to the first transport unit and driven by a third drive source that drives independently of the first drive source and the second drive source, and transports the medium; a storage container connected to the second transport unit and configured to store the medium; a control unit which, when determining that an abnormal medium is present in the first transport unit and the abnormal medium is a jammed medium that has become stuck in the first transport unit, stops driving the first drive source to stop the feeding unit, transports a normal medium that is present in the first transport unit and precedes the abnormal medium to the second transport unit, and then stops driving the second drive source to stop the first transport unit, and transports the normal medium present in the second transport unit to be stored in the storage cabinet; A media processing device having:

2. The control unit is When the abnormal medium is a rejected medium to be returned to the user, as determined based on the discrimination result of the discrimination unit, the normal medium present in the second conveying unit is stored in the storage unit, and then the rejected medium is conveyed by the first conveying unit and returned to the depositing unit. The media processing device of claim 1 .

3. The control unit is When the abnormal medium is a jammed medium that has become clogged in the first transport section, the normal medium present in the second transport section is stored in the storage, and then a predetermined guide section is caused to guide the jammed medium to be removed. The media processing device of claim 1 .

4. The control unit is A jammed medium removal screen that highlights a portion indicating the first transport section as the location where the jammed medium exists is displayed on the guidance section. The media processing device of claim 3 .

5. The control unit is When it is determined that the abnormal medium is present in the first transport section and the first transport section is stopped, the transport of the abnormal medium is stopped without allowing the abnormal medium to reach the second transport section. The media processing device of claim 1 .

6. a third transport section connected to the first transport section on the opposite side of the discriminating section from the deposit section, the third transport section temporarily storing the abnormal medium; and The control unit is When it is determined that the abnormal medium is present in the first transport section, the abnormal medium is transported to the third transport section. The media processing device of claim 5 .

7. The second conveying unit is When the driving of the second driving source is stopped and the first transport unit is stopped, the abnormal medium in the first transport unit is connected to the first transport unit at a position where the abnormal medium does not reach the second transport unit. The media processing device of claim 5 .

8. The first transport unit and the second transport unit form a substantially linear transport path for the medium along an alignment direction in which the plurality of containers are aligned.

8. The media processing device according to claim 1.

9. The control unit is In a deposit process, the normal medium that is inserted into the deposit section and determined to be normal based on the validation result of the validation section is directly transported to the storage unit by the second transport section without being temporarily held.

9. The media processing device according to claim 1.

10. a deposit section into which paper-like media to be traded with users is inserted; a feeding unit driven by a first driving source and feeding the medium from the deposit unit; a first transport unit that is connected to the deposit unit and driven by a second drive source that drives independently of the first drive source, and transports the medium; a discrimination unit provided in the first transport unit and configured to discriminate the medium being transported; a second transport unit that is connected to the first transport unit and driven by a third drive source that drives independently of the first drive source and the second drive source, and transports the medium; a storage container connected to the second transport unit and configured to store the medium; a control unit which, when determining that an abnormal medium is present in the first transport unit and the abnormal medium is a jammed medium that has become stuck in the first transport unit, stops driving the first drive source to stop the feeding unit, transports a normal medium that is present in the first transport unit and precedes the abnormal medium to the second transport unit, and then stops driving the second drive source to stop the first transport unit, and transports the normal medium present in the second transport unit to be stored in the storage cabinet; A medium trading device having the above configuration.

Citation Information

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