Banknote processing device

Abstract

To provide an easy-to-use banknote processor that reduces failed capturing of small bundles of banknotes.SOLUTION: A banknote processor includes: a small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 having a small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and an opening 85A that opens the small bundle banknote accumulation space in one direction; and a placement unit 91 located at the lower end of the small bundle banknote accumulation space and capable of placing a small bundle banknote W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space. The small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit includes: a first face guide 862 supporting the back end face of the small bundle banknote in the shortitudinal direction; a pair of side guides 861 supporting both end faces of the small bundle banknotes in the longitudinal direction; and a pair of second side guides 863 movable between a support position P31 provided at both ends of the opening in the longitudinal direction of the small bundle banknotes and positioned to cover the area of both ends of the opening to support the front end faces of the small bundle of banknotes in the shortitudinal direction, and a retracted position P32, which are positioned so as not to cover the area of both ends of the opening and are retracted to a position away from the front end faces of small bundle banknotes stored in the small bundle accumulation space.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a banknote processing apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a banknote processing apparatus configured such that a plurality of bundles of banded banknotes are accumulated at a banded banknote payout opening for ejecting the banded banknotes banded by a banding unit to the outside of the housing. In this apparatus, a plurality of bundles of banded banknotes can be ejected from the banded banknote payout opening to the outside of the housing all at once. Specifically, the above apparatus includes a vertically movable payout opening stage on which the banded banknotes are placed, and a claw member that can rotate only upward from a state extending in a substantially horizontal direction. In this apparatus, the banded banknotes originally on the claw member and the banded banknotes newly sent to the banded banknote payout opening by the transport arm are overlapped on the payout opening stage, and then the payout opening stage rises above the claw member, and thereafter, the payout opening stage descends, whereby the banded banknotes are delivered to the claw member. Thereafter, when the shutter mechanism opens, the user of the apparatus can take out a plurality of bundles of banded banknotes on the claw member of the banded banknote payout opening all at once.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a banknote processing apparatus provided with a small bundle payout / input port for taking out a plurality of bundles of small bundles (banded) banknotes from the apparatus all at once or taking in a plurality of bundles of small bundles (banded) banknotes from the outside and setting them in a stacked state to be taken into the apparatus. In this apparatus, when performing a small bundle replenishment process, the stacked small bundle banknotes placed on the stage by being directly inserted into the small bundle payout / input port from the outside are moved upward by the rising of the stage, and then each bundle is moved backward by the horizontal transport unit and stored in the corresponding small bundle storage.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED BY THE INVENTION

[0005] When performing the deposit processing of small-denomination banknotes with the above-described apparatus, the user of the apparatus sets a plurality of bundles of small-denomination banknotes at the deposit / withdrawal opening at once and places them on the stage. Then, the control unit moves the stage up (or down) to transfer the plurality of bundles of small-denomination banknotes in the vertical direction. After that, the control unit transfers the bundles one by one from the stage to the horizontal conveyance unit and conveys them to the corresponding small-denomination storage bin. By the way, in a conventional apparatus, when the user sets a plurality of bundles of small-denomination banknotes at the deposit / withdrawal opening, it is necessary to place the plurality of bundles of small-denomination banknotes on the stage so that they are stacked in a state where the plurality of bundles of small-denomination banknotes are properly aligned. However, if there are small-denomination banknotes in a skewed posture that are not aligned among the plurality of bundles of small-denomination banknotes set at the deposit / withdrawal opening, there is a risk of capture failure when the small-denomination banknotes in the skewed posture are transferred to the horizontal conveyance unit. For this reason, there is a problem that the usability during the deposit process is not good for the user.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide a banknote processing apparatus that suppresses capture failure of small-denomination banknotes and has good usability.

MEANS FOR SOLVING THE PROBLEM

[0007] A banknote processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes a small-denomination banknote accumulation space in which small-denomination banknotes can be inserted and removed, and a small-denomination deposit / withdrawal unit having an opening that opens the small-denomination banknote accumulation space in one direction, and a placement unit that is located at a lower end of the small-denomination banknote accumulation space and on which the small-denomination banknotes stored in the small-denomination banknote accumulation space can be placed in a vertically stacked state. The placement part is located at the lower end of the small bundle banknote accumulation space, and has a pair of flaps that can support the small bundle banknotes stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space from below. The pair of flaps are arranged to extend horizontally and can move between a closed position where they can support the small bundle banknotes and an open position where they are arranged to extend downward and do not support the small bundle banknotes. It is characterized by this.

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a banknote processing apparatus that suppresses capture failure of small-denomination banknotes and has good usability.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

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Embodiment for Carrying out the Invention

[0010] A bill processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The bill processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1 performs deposit and withdrawal processing and the like on bills. In the following description, the side where the operator stands during the main operation of the bill processing apparatus 11 is defined as "front", the opposite side as "rear", the left side as "left", and the right side as "right" when viewed from the operator. Also, the upper side is defined as "upper" and the lower side as "lower" when viewed from the operator.

[0011] As shown in FIG. 1, the bill processing apparatus 11 is configured such that a first unit 1 and a second unit 2 are arranged side by side on the left and right. The first unit 1 on the right side is a unit that performs deposit and withdrawal processing on loose bills (unbundled bills). The second unit 2 on the left side is a unit that performs deposit and withdrawal processing on small bundled bills W (see FIG. 3) obtained by accumulating loose bills of a single denomination in a predetermined bundling unit number (for example, 100 sheets) and bundling them with a bundling tape, and also performs withdrawal of new loose bills. Also, in the first unit 1, it is possible to create small bundled bills W from loose bills. The bill processing apparatus 11 is configured to transfer the small bundled bills W created in the first unit 1 to the second unit 2.

[0012] [First Unit 1] As shown in FIG. 1, the first unit 1 is configured by providing a loose bill deposit section 20, a loose bill withdrawal return section 21, and a loose bill withdrawal reject bin 22 at the upper part on the front side of its body 10. The loose bill withdrawal return section 21 is provided above the loose bill deposit section 20, and the loose bill withdrawal reject bin 22 is provided above the loose bill withdrawal return section 21.

[0013] The loose bill deposit section 20 has an openable and closable shutter 23. In the loose bill deposit section 20, when the shutter 23 is in the open state, loose bills are inserted from outside the machine, and then, when the shutter 23 is closed, the loose bills are fed into the machine.

[0014] The loose bill payout / return unit 21 has a shutter 25 that can be opened and closed. When the shutter 25 is in the closed state, loose bills for payout are fed out from inside the machine. Then, when the shutter 25 is opened, the loose bills are taken out of the machine. The loose bill payout / return unit 21 also feeds out the loose bills that are rejected during the loose bill deposit process.

[0015] The loose bill reject bin 22 is detachable from the machine body 10 of the first unit 1. Inside the loose bill reject bin 22, the loose bills fed out from inside the machine are accumulated and stored from the bottom up. The loose bill reject bin 22 is removed from the machine body 10 while the loose bills are stored inside, and then the loose bills are taken out from the inside.

[0016] Although not shown in the drawings, a bundling unit and a small bundle delivery unit are provided inside the machine body 10 of the first unit 1. The bundling unit bundles loose bills in a predetermined bundling unit number with a bundling tape to form a small bundle of bills W (see FIG. 3). The small bundle delivery unit sends out the small bundle of bills W created by the bundling unit to the second unit 2 side.

[0017] The first unit 1 is provided with a control unit 65 that controls the entire first unit 1 and the second unit 2, that is, the banknote processing device 11, and a touch panel type operation display unit 66 that receives operation inputs from the operator and displays information to the operator. The control unit 65 and the operation display unit 66 may be provided in the second unit 2, for example. The control unit 65 controls each part of the first unit 1, such as the loose bill deposit unit 20, the bundling unit, the small bundle delivery unit, and the operation display unit 66, as described above, for the first unit 1.

[0018] [Second Unit 2] As shown in FIG. 1, the second unit 2 has a small-denomination deposit / withdrawal section 71 at the upper part on the front side of its body 70. Further, the second unit 2 has a new-note withdrawal section 72 above the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal section 71 on the front side of the body 70. Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the second unit 2 has a deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 provided below the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal section 71 (the lower part of the body 70) for depositing and withdrawing small-denomination banknotes W.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, in the second unit 2, the rear part of the new-note withdrawal section 72 at the upper part of the body 70 serves as a new-note storage / withdrawal section 75 that stores new loose banknotes and withdraws the stored new loose banknotes from the new-note withdrawal section 72. The new-note withdrawal section 72 has an openable and closable shutter 76. The new-note withdrawal section 72 has the shutter 76 in the closed state, and new loose banknotes for withdrawal are fed out from inside the machine, and then the shutter 76 is opened to take out the new loose banknotes outside the machine.

[0020] The small-denomination deposit / withdrawal section 71 has an openable and closable shutter 81. Also, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal section 71 has a small-denomination banknote stacking space 85 in which small-denomination banknotes W can be put in and taken out, and an opening 85A that opens the small-denomination banknote stacking space forward (in one direction). The shutter 81 opens and closes the opening 85A of the small-denomination banknote stacking space 85.

[0021] At the lower end of the small-denomination banknote stacking space 85, a placement part 91 on which the small-denomination banknotes W stored in the small-denomination banknote stacking space 85 can be placed is provided. A plurality of small-denomination banknotes W can be placed on the placement part 91 in a vertically stacked state. The placement part 91 includes a pair of flaps 82 and a stage 92.

[0022] A pair of flaps 82 are located at the lower end of the stack of small-denomination banknotes storage space 85. The pair of flaps 82 are movable between a closed position P11 arranged to extend horizontally as illustrated in FIGS. 3 to 6 etc., a first open position P12 arranged to extend upward as illustrated in FIG. 22, and a second open position P13 arranged to extend downward as illustrated in FIGS. 7, 29 etc. When the pair of flaps 82 are arranged in the closed position P11, the stack of small-denomination banknotes W stored in the stack of small-denomination banknotes storage space 85 can be supported, that is, the pair of flaps 82 function as a placement portion 91. When the pair of flaps 82 are arranged in the first and second open positions P12, P13, the stack of small-denomination banknotes W stored in the stack of small-denomination banknotes storage space 85 cannot be supported.

[0023] The pair of flaps 82 are arranged at both ends of the stack of small-denomination banknotes storage space 85 in the front-rear direction. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, each flap 82 is rotatably attached about its axis with respect to a rotation axis 821 extending in the left-right direction. A stopper 822 is fixed to the rotation axis 821. Between the flap 82 and the rotation axis 821, a spring (not shown) is provided that biases the flap 82 in a direction from the first open position P12 toward the closed position P11 with respect to the rotation axis 821 (the direction indicated by arrow D1 in FIG. 6). The stopper 822 restricts the flap 82 from moving from the closed position P11 toward the second open position P13 by the biasing force of the spring. Thereby, the pair of flaps 82 are arranged in the closed position P11 by the biasing force of the spring and the stopper 822. Also, the pair of flaps 82 can be arranged in the first open position P12 by resisting the biasing force of the spring.

[0024] Further, one of the pair of rotating shafts 821 is connected to a flapper motor 824 via a drive belt 823. The other rotating shaft 821 is connected to one of the rotating shafts 821 via a set of three link bars 825. The flapper motor 824 rotates one of the rotating shafts 821 so that the flapper 82 attached to one of the rotating shafts 821 moves between the closed position P11 shown in FIG. 6 and the second open position P13 shown in FIG. 7. The other rotating shaft 821 rotates in the opposite direction to one of the rotating shafts 821 as one of the rotating shafts 821 rotates by the link bar 825. Thereby, the driving force of the flapper motor 824 can move the pair of flappers 82 between the closed position P11 and the second open position P13. The pair of flappers 82 described above may be arranged at both ends of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 in the left - right direction, for example.

[0025] The stage 92 shown in FIGS. 2 to 5 is formed to support the small bundle of banknotes W from below. The stage 92 is movable in the vertical direction between the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73. That is, the stage 92 conveys the small bundle of banknotes W between the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73. For example, at the time of depositing the small bundle of banknotes W, as shown in FIGS. 28 and 29, the stage 92 supports the small bundle of banknotes W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and moves downward (descends) to convey the small bundle of banknotes W to the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73. On the other hand, at the time of withdrawing the small bundle of banknotes W, as shown in FIGS. 21 and 22, the stage 92 supports the small bundle of banknotes W withdrawn by the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 and moves upward (ascends) to convey the small bundle of banknotes W to the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85.

[0026] Further, the stage 92 is movable so as to pass through the pair of flappers 82 in the vertical direction. The stage 92 functions as a placement portion 91 for placing the small bundle of banknotes W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 in a state where it is located at the lower end of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. In the following description, as shown in FIG. 3, the position where the stage 92 functions as the placement unit 91 is referred to as the first position P21, and the position where the stage 92 is arranged in the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 may be referred to as the second position P22. The second position P22 of the stage 92 is a position where the small bundle of banknotes W is transferred to and from the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 of the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73, which will be described later.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 5, the stage 92 is arranged so as not to overlap with a pair of flaps 82 arranged at the closed position P11 when viewed from the vertical direction. Specifically, notches 911 corresponding to the positions of a pair of flaps 82 arranged in the front-rear direction are formed at both front and rear ends of the stage 92 in the front-rear direction. Thereby, even when the pair of flaps 82 are arranged at the closed position P11, the stage 92 can be moved above and below the pair of flaps 82 without interfering with the pair of flaps 82.

[0028] In the present embodiment, in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71's small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, the small bundle of banknotes W is stored such that the longitudinal direction of the small bundle of banknotes W is along the left-right direction and the short-side direction of the small bundle of banknotes W is along the front-rear direction. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 includes a pair of side guides 861 that support the small bundle of banknotes W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 from both sides in its longitudinal direction, and a first surface guide 862 and a pair of second surface guides 863 that support the small bundle of banknotes W from both sides in its short-side direction.

[0029] The pair of side guides 861 each have a flat surface and support both end faces in the longitudinal direction of the small bundle of banknotes W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. In the present embodiment, the pair of side guides 861 are located at both left and right ends of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. In each side guide 861 illustrated in FIG. 5, two flat surfaces that support the end faces in the longitudinal direction of the small bundle of banknotes W are arranged at intervals in the front-rear direction, but the flat surface may be one, for example.

[0030] The first surface guide 862 has a flat surface and supports the end surface on the back side in the short side direction of the bundled banknotes W stored in the bundled banknote accumulation space 85. In the present embodiment, the first surface guide 862 is located at the rear end of the bundled banknote accumulation space 85.

[0031] A pair of second surface guides 863 are provided at both ends of the opening 85A of the bundled banknote accumulation space 85 in the longitudinal direction of the bundled banknotes W. In the present embodiment, the pair of second surface guides 863 are located at both ends in the left - right direction of the bundled banknote accumulation space 85. The pair of second surface guides 863 are movable between a support position P31 and a retracted position P32. The pair of second surface guides 863 are provided so as not to interfere with the shutter of the bundled money depositing and withdrawing unit 71 even when moving between the support position P31 and the retracted position P32.

[0032] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the support position P31 is a position where the pair of second surface guides 863 cover the regions at both ends of the opening 85A of the bundled banknote accumulation space 85 and support the end surface on the front side in the short side direction of the bundled banknotes W stored in the bundled banknote accumulation space 85. In a state where the pair of second surface guides 863 are arranged at the support position P31, the bundled banknotes W are sandwiched between the first surface guide 862 in the short side direction (front - rear direction) of the bundled banknotes W stored in the bundled banknote accumulation space 85.

[0033] On the other hand, as shown by the two - dot chain line in FIG. 5, the retracted position P32 is a position where the pair of second surface guides 863 are separated from and retracted from the end surface on the front side of the bundled banknotes W stored in the bundled banknote accumulation space 85. That is, in a state where the pair of second surface guides 863 are arranged at the retracted position P32, the bundled banknotes W stored in the bundled banknote accumulation space 85 are not sandwiched between the first surface guide 862. Also, the retracted position P32 of the second surface guide 863 in the present embodiment is also a position that does not cover the opening 85A of the bundled banknote accumulation space 85. For this reason, in a state where the pair of second surface guides 863 are arranged at the retracted position P32, the bundled banknotes W can be easily taken in and out of the bundled banknote accumulation space 85 through the opening 85A without being obstructed by the second surface guide 863.

[0034] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, each second surface guide 863 of the present embodiment is formed in a strip shape with the vertical direction as the longitudinal direction, and is rotatably provided between a support position P31 and a retracted position P32 about a rotation axis 8631 extending in the vertical direction. Each second surface guide 863 can be rotated by driving a guide motor (not shown). Each second surface guide 863 is arranged in a state where it is disposed at the support position P31 such that the plate thickness direction of the second surface guide 863 faces the front-rear direction. Then, the pair of second surface guides 863 can move to the retracted position P32 by rotating in opposite directions so as to face the outside of the opening 85A in the left-right direction from the support position P31. The mechanism by which the pair of second surface guides 863 rotate in opposite directions may be the same as the rotation mechanism of the pair of flaps 82 illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7, for example. The mechanism for moving the pair of second surface guides 863 between the support position P31 and the retracted position P32 is not limited to the above-described rotation mechanism, and may be a slide mechanism that moves the second surface guide 863 in a linear direction.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 4, the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 of the present embodiment further includes an attitude detection sensor 87 that detects the attitude of the small bundle of banknotes W inserted into the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. The attitude detection sensor 87 detects whether or not the small bundle of banknotes W inserted into the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 is arranged in an oblique attitude. The oblique attitude of the small bundle of banknotes W means that, when viewed from the vertical direction, the longitudinal direction of the small bundle of banknotes W is largely inclined with respect to the arrangement direction (left-right direction) of the pair of side guides 861 of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, or the short side direction of the small bundle of banknotes W is largely inclined with respect to the arrangement direction (front-rear direction) of the first surface guide 862 and the second surface guide 863 of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. In a state where the small bundle of banknotes W is arranged in an oblique attitude, for example, a part of the small bundle of banknotes W protrudes to the front side of the opening 85A of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85.

[0036] The posture detection sensor 87 may be arranged, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, in front of the opening 85A of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and on the rear side with respect to the shutter in a state where the opening 85A is closed. The posture detection sensor 87 detects whether the small bundle banknote W inserted into the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 from the outside protrudes from the opening 85A to the outside (front side) of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, thereby detecting whether the small bundle banknote W is arranged in an inclined posture. The specific configuration of the posture detection sensor 87 may be arbitrary, such as an optical sensor (for example, a sensor including a light emitting element and a light receiving element).

[0037] The small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 of the present embodiment further includes a bill press 88 arranged above the stage 92, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The bill press 88 is movable in the vertical direction independently of the stage 92. Further, the bill press 88 can sandwich the small bundle banknote W between it and the stage 92. The bill press 88 has a flat lower surface that makes surface contact with the upper surface of the small bundle banknote W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. Specifically, the bill press 88 is formed in a plate shape with the vertical direction as the plate thickness direction.

[0038] The bill press 88 of the present embodiment is formed so as to sandwich, between it and the stage 92, the portion on the front side (one side in the first linear direction) of the small bundle banknote W placed on the stage 92, as shown in FIG. 4. Further, the bill press 88 of the present embodiment is formed so as to sandwich, between it and the stage 92, both end portions in the left-right direction (second linear direction) of the small bundle banknote W placed on the stage 92. Specifically, the bill press 88 is formed to extend in the left-right direction at the front side portion of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and is formed in a U shape that extends rearward at both end portions in the left-right direction. The bill press 88 is not limited to being formed as described above, and may be formed, for example, so as to sandwich the entire small bundle banknote placed on the stage 92 between it and the stage 92.

[0039] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 of the second unit includes a small bundle storage section 111(A) to 111(D), a small bundle collection cassette section 121, a small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131, a feeding mechanism 141, and an extrusion mechanism 151.

[0040] The small bundle storage section 111 is disposed at the lower part of the machine body 70 of the second unit 2. Also, the small bundle storage section 111 is offset rearward (one side in the first linear direction) with respect to the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 described above. The small bundle storage section 111 may be, for example, one, but in this embodiment, a plurality (specifically, four) are arranged side by side in the front-rear direction with their vertical and horizontal positions aligned. The small bundle storage section 111 can receive and store the small bundle banknotes W placed on the stage 92 that constitutes the placement section 91, and can also send out the small bundle banknotes W stored in the small bundle storage section 111 onto the stage 92 of the placement section 91. The conveyance of the small bundle banknotes W between the stage 92 of the placement section 91 and the small bundle storage section 111 is performed by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131, the feeding mechanism 141, and the extrusion mechanism 151, which will be described later.

[0041] Among the plurality of small bundle storage sections 111, the small bundle storage section 111(A) disposed at the rearmost side, the small bundle storage section 111(B) disposed second from the rear, the small bundle storage section 111(C) disposed third from the rear, and the small bundle storage section 111(D) disposed at the foremost side all store the small bundle banknotes W in a stacked state where they are accumulated from the bottom up.

[0042] The small bundle storage section 111(A) stores the small bundle banknotes W so that they can be paid out in a mixed denomination manner. In contrast, the small bundle storage section 111(B) stores the small bundle banknotes W of a predetermined single denomination (specifically, a small bundle of thousand-yen notes), the small bundle storage section 111(C) stores the small bundle banknotes W of a predetermined single denomination (specifically, a small bundle of ten-thousand-yen notes), and the small bundle storage section 111(D) stores the small bundle banknotes W of a predetermined single denomination (specifically, a small bundle of ten-thousand-yen notes), each in a manner that allows for payout.

[0043] That is, the second unit 2 has a plurality of small bundle storage sections 111 for single denominations (small bundles of ten-thousand-yen notes and small bundles of thousand-yen notes), classified by denomination. Note that the storage pattern of the small bundle storage section 111 is not limited to the above and can be arbitrarily set.

[0044] Each small bundle storage unit 111 includes a rectangular tube-shaped container 115 that forms an internal space for accommodating the small bundle of banknotes W, a pair of flaps 116 provided at the upper part of the container 115 to open and close the opening at the upper part of the container 115, and a stage 117 that supports the small bundle of banknotes W in an aggregated state and moves up and down within the internal space of the container 115. The pair of flaps 116 rotate downward from the horizontally arranged closed state by the drive of a flap motor (not shown in detail) to become an open state. The structure for driving the pair of flaps 116 of the small bundle storage unit 111 may be the same as the structure for driving the pair of flaps 82 of the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7, for example. On the stage 117 of the small bundle storage unit 111, the small bundle of banknotes W is placed in a state where a plurality of loose banknotes constituting the small bundle of banknotes W are stacked one on top of the other from bottom to top with the stacking direction of the loose banknotes being vertical and the longitudinal direction of the loose banknotes being along the left-right direction.

[0045] The small bundle collection cassette unit 121 is disposed in front of the small bundle storage unit 111(D) at the lower part of the machine body 70 of the second unit 2. The small bundle collection cassette unit 121 is detachable from the machine body 70. The small bundle collection cassette unit 121 stores the small bundle of banknotes W conveyed from the small bundle storage unit 111 when collecting the small bundle of banknotes W, and the replenishment small bundle of banknotes W is loaded outside the machine when replenishing the small bundle of banknotes W.

[0046] The small bundle collection cassette unit 121 includes a rectangular tube-shaped container 125 that forms an internal space for accommodating the small bundle of banknotes W, a pair of flaps 126 provided at the upper part of the container 125 to open and close the opening at the upper part of the container 125, and a stage 127 that supports the small bundle of banknotes W in an aggregated state and moves up and down within the internal space of the container 125. The pair of flaps 126 rotate downward from the horizontally arranged closed state by the drive of a flap motor (not shown in detail) to become an open state. On the stage 127 of the small bundle collection cassette unit 121, the small bundle of banknotes W is placed in a state where a plurality of loose banknotes constituting the small bundle of banknotes W are stacked one on top of the other from bottom to top with the stacking direction of the loose banknotes being vertical and the longitudinal direction of the loose banknotes being along the left-right direction.

[0047] The small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 is provided above the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 and the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D). The small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 receives the small bundle of banknotes W sent out from the stage 92 of the placement unit 91 and conveys it to the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 and the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D), and also receives the small bundle of banknotes W from the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 and the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) and conveys it to the stage 92 of the placement unit 91. When moving the small bundle of banknotes W relative to the stage 92 of the placement unit 91 by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, the stage 92 of the placement unit 91 is located at the second position P22 (see FIG. 3 etc.). Also, the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 conveys the small bundle of banknotes W between the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 and the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D).

[0048] The small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 has an endless belt 132 extending in the front-rear direction and a plurality of crossbars 133 provided at predetermined equal intervals on the outer peripheral portion of the endless belt 132. The small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 receives a bundle of small bundle banknotes W between adjacent crossbars 133 in the rotational direction of the endless belt 132 and conveys it in the front-rear direction.

[0049] In the small bundle storage unit 111, a pair of flaps 116 rotate downward by the drive of a flap motor (not shown in detail) to be in an open state, and the stage 117 rises to project the uppermost bundle of small bundle banknotes W among the small bundle banknotes W on the stage 117 above the housing 115. In this state, the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 moves the crossbar 133 protruding downward from the endless belt 132 forward, and thereby conveys this bundle of small bundle banknotes W by pushing with the crossbar 133 toward the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22. At this time, another small bundle storage unit 111 in front of the small bundle storage unit 111 that has fed out the small bundle of banknotes W keeps the pair of flaps 116 in a closed state. Thus, this bundle of small bundle banknotes W moves forward on the pair of flaps 116 of another small bundle storage unit 111. Also, at this time, if the pair of flaps 126 of the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 is in a closed state, this bundle of small bundle banknotes W moves forward on the pair of flaps 126.

[0050] The small bundle collection cassette unit 121 has a pair of flappers 126 that rotate downward by the drive of a flapper motor (not shown) to an open state, and the stage 127 rises to project the uppermost small bundle of banknotes W among the small bundles of banknotes W on the stage 127 above the housing 125. In this state, the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 moves the crosspiece 133 that protrudes downward from the endless belt 132 forward, thereby pushing this small bundle of banknotes W with the crosspiece 133 and conveying it toward the stage 92 disposed at the second position P22. Also, in this state, the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 moves the crosspiece 133 that protrudes downward from the endless belt 132 backward, thereby pushing this small bundle of banknotes W with the crosspiece 133 and conveying it toward the small bundle storage unit 111.

[0051] In the small bundle collection cassette unit 121, when the stage 127 rises in the open state where the pair of flappers 126 have rotated downward, if there are small bundles of banknotes W on the stage 127, the uppermost small bundle of banknotes W among them is positioned, and if there are no small bundles of banknotes W, the stage 127 is positioned at a predetermined receiving position slightly lower than the upper end of the housing 125. In this state, the small bundle of banknotes W that has been pushed forward by the crosspiece 133 from the small bundle storage unit 111 and conveyed by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 is placed on the uppermost small bundle of banknotes W in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 or on the stage 127. Alternatively, in this state, the small bundle of banknotes W that has been pushed backward by the crosspiece 133 from the stage 92 side and conveyed by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 is placed on the uppermost small bundle of banknotes W in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 or on the stage 127. From these states, when the stage 127 descends, the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 stores the small bundle of banknotes W that has been conveyed from the small bundle storage unit 111 or the stage 92 side as described above.

[0052] At the lower part of the second unit 2, between the small bundle storage section 111(D) and the small bundle collection cassette section 121 in the front-rear direction, there is provided a small bundle identification section 135 that identifies the denomination and the like from the image data of the small bundle of banknotes W conveyed by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131. The small bundle identification section 135 identifies the small bundle of banknotes W conveyed from the small bundle collection cassette section 121 side to the small bundle storage section 111(D) side by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131, and also identifies the small bundle of banknotes W conveyed from the small bundle storage section 111(D) side to the small bundle collection cassette section 121 side by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131.

[0053] The delivery mechanism 141 sends out the small bundle of banknotes W from the small bundle storage section 111 side (the small bundle collection cassette section 121 or the small bundle storage sections 111(A) to 111(D)) onto the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22. Specifically, the delivery mechanism 141 pushes forward (to the other side in the first straight line direction) the small bundle of banknotes W received and conveyed by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131 from the small bundle collection cassette section 121 or the small bundle storage sections 111(A) to 111(D) onto the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22. The delivery mechanism 141 descends and enters and ascends and retracts with respect to the conveyance path of the small bundle of banknotes W by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131. The delivery mechanism 141 pushes out the small bundle of banknotes W conveyed forward by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131 onto the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22 by descending and moving forward behind it.

[0054] The delivery mechanism 141 of the present embodiment includes, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 8, a base portion 142, a slide member 143, and a delivery arm 144. The base portion 142 is arranged above the conveyance path of the small bundle of banknotes W by the small bundle horizontal conveyance section 131. The slide member 143 is attached to the base portion 142 so as to be movable in the front-rear direction. The delivery arm 144 is a member for pushing out the small-denomination banknotes W onto the stage 92 from the rear. The delivery arm 144 is formed in an L-shape (or a Z-shape) that extends downward from the central portion in the front-rear direction toward both the front and rear sides. The delivery arm 144 is rotatably attached to the slide member 143 such that its rear end portion serves as the rotation center 1441. The delivery arm 144 is biased in one rotational direction (counterclockwise in FIGS. 3 and 8) by a torsion spring (not shown) so that the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 faces downward.

[0055] A base portion 142 is fixed with an arm guide shaft 145 that supports, from below, a portion of the delivery arm 144 that is in front of its rotation center 1441. By supporting the portion of the delivery arm 144 located in front of the rotation center 1441, the arm guide shaft 145 restricts the rotation of the delivery arm 144 due to the biasing force of the torsion spring. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, in a state where the arm guide shaft 145 is positioned in front of the rotation center 1441 of the delivery arm 144 and supports the front end portion of the delivery arm 144, the delivery arm 144 (particularly the front end portion) does not protrude significantly downward from the lower end of the base portion 142. In particular, as shown in FIG. 8, in a state where the arm guide shaft 145 supports the tip portion of the front end portion of the delivery arm 144, the delivery arm 144 (particularly the front end portion) does not protrude downward from the lower end of the base portion 142. On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, in a state where the rotation center 1441 of the delivery arm 144 is positioned in front of the arm guide shaft 145, the arm guide shaft 145 does not support the delivery arm 144. For this reason, the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 protrudes downward from the lower end of the base portion 142.

[0056] As shown in FIGS. 8 to 11, the slide member 143 is provided with a rotation restricting portion 146 that supports, from above, a portion of the delivery arm 144 that is on the rear side of its rotation center 1441. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the rotation restricting portion 146 supports the portion of the delivery arm 144 that is located on the rear side of the rotation center 1441 in a state where the arm guide shaft 145 does not support the delivery arm 144, thereby restricting the rotation of the delivery arm 144 due to the biasing force of the torsion spring. That is, the rotation restricting portion 146 restricts the rotation of the delivery arm 144 in a state where the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 protrudes downward from the lower end of the base portion 142.

[0057] The slide member 143 is connected to a delivery motor (not shown) via a pair of link arms 147, a rotation shaft 148, and a gear and a torque limiter (not shown). Thereby, the rotation of the delivery motor can be converted into the forward and backward movement of the slide member 143 by the link arms 147 to drive the slide member 143. By switching the rotation direction of the delivery motor, the movement direction (forward direction and backward direction) of the slide member 143 can be switched.

[0058] In the delivery mechanism 141 configured as described above, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 8, the state where the arm guide shaft 145 supports the tip portion of the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 and the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 does not protrude downward from the lower end of the base portion 142 is the standby state.

[0059] When the small bundle of banknotes W is pushed out onto the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22 by the delivery mechanism 141, the slide member 143 is advanced from the standby state by the driving force of the delivery motor. As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, the rotation center 1441 of the delivery arm 144 advances, and the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 moves downward from the lower end of the base portion 142 by the biasing force of the torsion spring. Next, as shown in FIG. 10, when the slide member 143 is further advanced, the rotation of the delivery arm 144 by the torsion spring is restricted by the rotation restricting portion 146, and the state where the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 protrudes downward from the lower end of the base portion 142 is maintained. Further, as shown in FIG. 11, by advancing the slide member 143, the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 advances in a state of protruding downward from the lower end of the base portion 142, and the small bundle of banknotes W can be pushed out onto the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22. After the small bundle of banknotes W is pushed out by the delivery mechanism 141, by retracting the slide member 143 by the driving force of the delivery motor, the front end portion of the delivery arm 144 retracts and moves upward from the lower end of the base portion 142.

[0060] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the extrusion mechanism 151 extrudes the small bundle of banknotes W from the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22 toward the small bundle storage unit 111 side (the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 or the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D)). The extrusion mechanism 151 moves backward from a state where it is located in front of the stage 92 arranged at the second position P22 to the rear of the stage 92, thereby extruding the small bundle of banknotes W on the stage 92 backward (one side in the first linear direction) toward the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131.

[0061] As shown in FIGS. 12 to 17, the extrusion mechanism 151 of the present embodiment is formed in a rod shape extending linearly when viewed from the vertical direction, and includes a pair of extrusion bars 152 for extruding the small bundle of banknotes W. Each extrusion bar 152 is rotatably provided about an axis extending in the vertical direction such that the first end portion in its longitudinal direction serves as the rotation center 1521. The pair of extrusion bars 152 are spaced apart in the longitudinal direction (left - right direction) of the small bundle of banknotes W arranged on the stage 92 at the second position P22. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, when a pair of extrusion bars 152 are arranged on the front side of the stage 92, each extrusion bar 152 is arranged such that its longitudinal direction is along the left - right direction, and the direction from the first end portion to the second end portion of the longitudinal direction of the pair of extrusion bars 152 is the direction towards each other's extrusion bars 152 in the left - right direction.

[0062] The pair of extrusion bars 152 can move back and forth between the front side of the stage 92 as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13 and the rear side of the stage 92 as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17 by the driving force of an extrusion motor (not shown). Also, as shown in FIGS. 12, 14, and 16, the pair of extrusion bars 152 rotate respectively as they move back and forth. The pair of extrusion bars 152 rotate such that the direction from the first end portion to the second end portion of the extrusion bar 152 faces backward during the backward movement. Thereby, the pair of extrusion bars 152 push out the small - bundle banknotes W backward not only by their backward movement but also by their rotation. The rotation of the extrusion bar 152 is operated by a cam (not shown). That is, there is no dedicated motor for rotationally driving the extrusion bar 152, and the extrusion bar 152 rotates using the driving force of the extrusion motor. When moving the pair of extrusion bars 152 backward to the front side of the stage, each extrusion bar 152 rotates in the opposite direction to the above, and in the state of reaching the front side of the stage, it returns to the position where the longitudinal direction of each extrusion bar 152 faces the left - right direction as shown in FIG. 12.

[0063] When the extrusion mechanism 151 pushes out the small - bundle banknotes W on the stage 92 towards the small - bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, as shown in FIG. 13, the small - bundle banknotes W are previously clamped in the vertical direction between the stage 92 and the bill press 88. Thereby, the extrusion mechanism 151 can send out the small - bundle banknotes W from the stage 92 to the small - bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 neatly. Specifically, the extrusion mechanism 151 can correctly send out the small - bundle banknotes W on the stage 92 into the gap between the endless belt 132 and the small - bundle collection cassette unit 121 (or the small - bundle storage unit 111) in the vertical direction.

[0064] As shown in FIG. 2, when the pair of flappers 116 rotate downward by the drive of a flapper motor (not shown) in the small bundle storage unit 111, the stage 117 rises in this state. When there is a small bundle of banknotes W on the stage 117, the uppermost small bundle of banknotes W among them is positioned, and when there is no small bundle of banknotes W, the stage 117 is positioned at a predetermined receiving position slightly below the upper end of the housing 115. In this state, when the small bundle of banknotes W pushed out by the pushing mechanism 151 is conveyed backward by the bar portion 133 of the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, this small bundle of banknotes W is placed on the uppermost small bundle of banknotes W or the stage 117 in this small bundle storage unit 111. In this state, when the stage 117 descends, the small bundle storage unit 111 stores the small bundle of banknotes W conveyed from the stage 92 by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. At this time, the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 keeps the pair of flappers 126 in a closed state, and this small bundle of banknotes W moves backward on the pair of flappers 126. Also, the small bundle storage unit 111 located in front of this small bundle storage unit 111 also keeps the pair of flappers 116 in a closed state, and this small bundle of banknotes W moves backward on the pair of flappers 116. The small bundle storage unit 111 operates in the same manner when storing the small bundle of banknotes W conveyed backward by the bar portion 133 of the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 from the small bundle collection cassette unit 121. The pushing mechanism 151 pushes out the small bundle of banknotes W from the stage 92 toward the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 and the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D).

[0065] As shown in FIG. 2, the second unit 2 further includes a small bundle receiving unit 101. The small bundle receiving unit 101 is provided behind the area where the stage 92 moves up and down below the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71. The small bundle receiving unit 101 receives the small bundle of banknotes W that has been bundled by the bundling unit of the first unit 1 and sent out from the small bundle sending unit, holds it from above and below at a predetermined upper receiving position, and conveys it downward. The small bundle receiving unit 101 receives a bundle of small bundle banknotes W from the first unit 1, holds only the received bundle of small bundle banknotes W, conveys it to a predetermined lower limit position, and further conveys it forward and delivers it onto the stage 92. The height position of the stage 92 at this time is a position between the above-mentioned first position P21 and the second position P22 in the vertical direction, and is set as the third position. Therefore, the small bundle receiving unit 101 delivers the small bundle of banknotes W to the stage 92 at the third position.

[0066] The small bundle receiving unit 101 receives a bundle of small bundle banknotes W sent out along the longitudinal direction from the small bundle sending unit 39 of the first unit 1 in a posture where the stacking direction of the loose banknotes constituting the small bundle banknotes W is vertical and the longitudinal direction of the loose banknotes is along the left-right direction, holds and conveys it downward in that posture, and also conveys it forward in that posture and delivers it onto the stage 92. Therefore, the small bundle of banknotes W delivered onto the stage 92 from the small bundle receiving unit 101 also has a posture where the stacking direction of the loose banknotes is vertical and the longitudinal direction is along the left-right direction.

[0067] The control unit 65 shown in FIG. 1 controls, for the second unit 2, the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, the new note payout unit 72, the new note storage and payout unit 75, the placement unit 91, the small bundle receiving unit 101, the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D), the small bundle collection cassette unit 121, the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, the small bundle identification unit 135, the sending mechanism 141, the extrusion mechanism 151, etc.

[0068] Next, the processing in the second unit 2 of the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment will be described.

[0069] When the banknote processing device 11 is in the standby state, in the second unit 2, the shutter 81 of the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 is in the closed state, and the pair of flappers 82 are also in the closed state. Also, when in this standby state, the stage 92 is at the withdrawal position above the pair of flappers 82. Also, when in this standby state, the small bundle receiving unit 101 is at a predetermined upper receiving position. Also, when in this standby state, the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) store appropriate small bundles of banknotes W, and all have the pair of flappers 116 in the closed state. Also, when in this standby state, the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 is in an empty state, and the pair of flappers 126 are in the closed state.

[0070] [Small bundle banknote withdrawal process] The thick lines in Fig. 18 indicate the banknote conveyance route of the stored small bundle withdrawal process in the small bundle banknote withdrawal process of withdrawing the small bundle of banknotes W from the specified denomination among the small bundle storage units 111(B) storing small bundles of 1000-yen banknotes, and small bundle storage units 111(C) and 111(D) storing small bundles of 10,000-yen banknotes to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 based on the small bundle banknote withdrawal operation input to the operation display unit 66. Also, the thick lines in Fig. 19 indicate the banknote conveyance route of the bound small bundle withdrawal process in the small bundle banknote withdrawal process of withdrawing the small bundle of banknotes W sent from the bundling unit of the first unit 1 to the small bundle receiving unit 101 of the second unit 2 through the small bundle sending unit to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 based on the small bundle banknote withdrawal operation input to the operation display unit 66. Also, the thick lines in Fig. 20 indicate the banknote conveyance route of the bound small bundle replenishment process in the small bundle banknote withdrawal process of replenishing the corresponding ones of the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) with the small bundle of banknotes W sent from the bundling unit of the first unit 1 to the small bundle receiving unit 101 of the second unit 2 through the small bundle sending unit based on the small bundle banknote withdrawal operation input to the operation display unit 66.

[0071] Here, among the bundled banknotes W, the bundled banknotes W stored in the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) and withdrawn to the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71 in a single transaction such as bundled banknote withdrawal processing are defined as stored bundled W. Therefore, the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) can dispense while storing the bundled banknotes W as stored bundled W. Also, among the bundled banknotes W, the bundled banknotes W created at the binding part of the first unit 1 and withdrawn or the like to the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71 in a single transaction such as bundled banknote withdrawal processing are defined as bound bundled W.

[0072] In a single transaction of bundled banknote withdrawal processing, when the number of bundles to be withdrawn for each denomination for which withdrawal is requested is input to the operation display unit 66 and a withdrawal start operation is input to the operation display unit 66, the control unit 65 starts a single transaction of bundled banknote withdrawal processing. When starting this single transaction, first, based on the number of bundles to be withdrawn for each denomination input, the available quantity of the stored bundled W already stored in the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) is compared with the required quantity of the bundled banknotes W requested for withdrawal in this single transaction, and based on this comparison result, a bundled banknote withdrawal processing pattern is determined, and a single transaction of bundled banknote withdrawal processing is performed according to the determined bundled banknote withdrawal processing pattern.

[0073] This bundled banknote withdrawal processing pattern is a first pattern that only performs the stored bundled withdrawal processing of withdrawing the stored bundled W from the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) to the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71, as shown by the thick line in FIG. 18, and a second pattern that performs both the stored bundled withdrawal processing of withdrawing the stored bundled W from the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) to the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71, as shown by the thick line in FIG. 18, and the bound bundled withdrawal processing of withdrawing the bundled banknotes W created at the binding part of the first unit 1 and sent from the bundled sending unit to the bundled receiving unit 101 of the second unit 2 to the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71, as shown by the thick line in FIG. 19. The control unit 65 selects and executes either one of these first and second patterns, and preferentially executes the first pattern among the first and second patterns.

[0074] That is, when performing one transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, the control unit 65, in both the stored small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes in the small-denomination storage unit 111(B) and the stored small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes in the small-denomination storage units 111(C) and 111(D), if the number of stored small bundles W already stored is equal to or greater than the withdrawal request number of the small-denomination banknotes W requested for withdrawal in the said one transaction, only performs the stored small-bundle withdrawal process of causing the small-denomination storage units 111(B) to 111(D) to withdraw the stored small bundles W to the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal unit 71.

[0075] Also, when performing one transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, the control unit 65, in the stored small bundles W of at least one of the denominations of the stored small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes in the small-denomination storage unit 111(B) and the stored small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes in the small-denomination storage units 111(C) and 111(D), if the number of stored small bundles W already stored is less than the withdrawal request number of the small-denomination banknotes W requested for withdrawal in the said one transaction, only performs the stored small-bundle withdrawal process for the denominations that are not less than the said withdrawal request number, and for the denominations that are less than the said withdrawal request number, performs the stored small-bundle withdrawal process and also performs the bound small-bundle withdrawal process of creating bound small bundles W at the binding unit from the loose banknotes of the said denominations in the first unit 1 and causing them to be withdrawn to the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal unit 71. Thus, the control unit 65 merges both the stored small bundles W stored in the small-denomination storage units 111(B) to 111(D) and the bound small bundles W created by binding loose banknotes at the binding unit in the first unit 1 and causes them to be withdrawn to the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal unit 71.

[0076] Also, in one transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, the control unit 65, based on the comparison result between the existing quantity of the stored small bundles W already stored in the small-denomination storage units 111(B) to 111(D) and the requested number of the small-denomination banknotes W requested for withdrawal in the said one transaction, in addition to the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process pattern, additionally executes the bound small-bundle replenishment process of creating bound small bundles W at the binding unit from loose banknotes in the first unit 1 and storing these bound small bundles W in the corresponding ones of the small-denomination storage units 111(B) to 111(D).

[0077] That is, when the control unit 65 performs one transaction of the bundled banknote withdrawal process, if, in this one transaction, it is predicted that there is a denomination shortage type in which the number of bundles of the stored bundles W stored in the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) becomes zero in at least one of the denominations of the bundled storage unit 111(B) storing the stored bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes and the bundled storage units 111(C) and 111(D) storing the stored bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes, then including this one transaction, in the first unit 1, the loose banknotes of the denomination shortage type are bundled at the bundling unit to create the bundled bundle W, and an additional bundled bundle replenishment process of storing the bundled bundle W in the bundled storage unit 111 of the denomination shortage type among the bundled storage units 111(B) and the bundled storage units 111(C) and 111(D) is executed to make the number of stored bundles in the bundled storage unit 111(B) and the number of stored bundles in the bundled storage units 111(C) and 111(D) all equal to or more than a predetermined lower limit number of bundles. Note that since the bundled storage units 111(C) and 111(D) store the same denomination, the total number of stored bundles is made equal to or more than the predetermined lower limit number of bundles.

[0078] In this way, the control unit 65 combines both the stored bundles W stored in the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) and the bundled bundles W created by bundling loose banknotes at the bundling unit in the first unit 1 and withdraws them to the bundled money deposit / withdrawal unit 71, and at the same time, sends out and stores the bundled bundles W created by bundling loose banknotes at the bundling unit in the first unit 1 toward the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D). Note that the denomination type in which the number of stored bundles W becomes less than or equal to a predetermined number of bundles greater than zero is defined as the denomination shortage type, and a number of bundles greater than a predetermined value than this predetermined number of bundles may be defined as the lower limit number of bundles.

[0079] Moreover, in addition to comparing the number of withdrawal requests for the bundled banknotes W of each denomination with the number of bundles of the bundled storage W of 1,000-yen banknotes stored in the small-bundle storage unit 111(B) as the in-machine stock and the number of bundles of the bundled storage W of 10,000-yen banknotes stored in the small-bundle storage units 111(C) and 111(D), the control unit 65 also compares the number of loose banknotes stored in the first unit 1 as the in-machine stock. Then, in consideration of the predetermined lower limit number of bundles for leaving the stored bundled W set in the small-bundle storage unit 111(B) for 1,000-yen banknotes and the lower limit number of loose banknotes for leaving the loose banknotes set in the loose-banknote storage unit for 1,000-yen banknotes in the first unit 1, and also in consideration of the predetermined lower limit number of bundles for leaving the stored bundled W set in the small-bundle storage units 111(C) and 111(D) for 10,000-yen banknotes and the predetermined lower limit number of loose banknotes for leaving the loose banknotes set in the loose-banknote storage unit for 10,000-yen banknotes in the first unit 1, the operation pattern of the transaction is determined.

[0080] That is, when starting a transaction of the bundled banknote withdrawal process, if it is predicted that after the transaction, the small-bundle storage unit 111(B) that withdraws the bundled storage W of 1,000-yen banknotes maintains the lower limit number of bundles which is the predetermined storage amount, and the small-bundle storage units 111(C) and 111(D) that withdraw the bundled storage W of 10,000-yen banknotes together maintain the lower limit number of bundles which is the predetermined storage amount, only the bundled storage W of the small-bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D) is withdrawn.

[0081] Also, when starting a transaction of the bundled banknote withdrawal process, if it is predicted that after the transaction, at least one of the small-bundle storage unit 111(B) that withdraws the bundled storage W of 1,000-yen banknotes and the small-bundle storage units 111(C) and 111(D) that withdraw the bundled storage W of 10,000-yen banknotes cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles which is the predetermined storage amount, and if it is predicted that the loose banknotes for creating the bundled W to be replenished to the small-bundle storage unit 111 that cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles are secured in the corresponding loose-banknote storage unit in the first unit 1, then in this transaction, after withdrawing at least the bundled storage W among the bundled storage W and the bundled W, the bundled W is replenished to the small-bundle storage unit 111 that cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles to return to the predetermined lower limit number of bundles.

[0082] Further, when starting one transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, if it is predicted that at least one of the small-denomination storage units 111(B) for withdrawing the stored small bundle W of 1,000-yen banknotes and the small-denomination storage units 111(C) and 111(D) for withdrawing the stored small bundle W of 10,000-yen banknotes cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles, which is a predetermined storage quantity, and it is predicted that the loose banknotes for creating the bound small bundle W to be replenished to the small-denomination storage unit 111 that cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles are not secured in the corresponding one of the loose banknote storage units in the first unit 1, then in this transaction, after withdrawing at least the stored small bundle W out of the stored small bundle W and the bound small bundle W, the bound small bundle W is not replenished to the small-denomination storage unit 111 that cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles.

[0083] Moreover, when it is predicted that the number of loose banknotes, which is the sum of the number for creating the bound small bundle W to be replenished to the small-denomination storage unit 111 that cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles and the lower limit number of loose banknotes, is not secured in the corresponding one of the loose banknote storage units in the first unit 1, the bound small bundle W is not replenished to the small-denomination storage unit 111 that cannot maintain the lower limit number of bundles.

[0084] Further, when starting one transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, if not even one stored small bundle W of the denomination for which withdrawal is requested is stored in the corresponding ones of the small-denomination storage units 111(B) to 111(D), only the bound small bundle W obtained by binding the loose banknotes in the corresponding one of the loose banknote storage units in the first unit 1 at the binding unit is withdrawn to the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal unit 71.

[0085] Further, in one transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, when withdrawing small-denomination banknotes W of a plurality of denominations to the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal unit 71 at once and withdrawing both the stored small bundle W and the bound small bundle W, when the stored small bundle W and the bound small bundle W merge, the small-denomination banknotes W of a plurality of denominations are merged so as to be grouped by denomination. At this time, at the small-denomination deposit / withdrawal unit 71, the small-denomination banknotes W of higher denominations are merged so as to be grouped on the lower side.

[0086] Here, as a specific example, when starting the first transaction, which is a single transaction of dispensing small-denomination banknotes, an example will be described where the breakdown of the stored small bundles W of the denominations for which withdrawals are requested is 5 bundles of small-denomination banknotes W of 10,000 yen notes and 5 bundles of small-denomination banknotes W of 1,000 yen notes. Moreover, when starting this first transaction, there are 7 bundles of the stored small bundles W of 10,000 yen notes in the small-bundle storage section 111(C) and 8 bundles in the small-bundle storage section 111(D), 4 bundles of the stored small bundles W of 1,000 yen notes in the small-bundle storage section 111(B), and there are 800 loose 1,000 yen banknotes in the loose banknote storage section of the first unit 1. Also, an example will be described where the lower limit number of bundles of the stored small bundles W of 10,000 yen notes when combining the small-bundle storage sections 111(C) and 111(D) is set to 3 bundles, the lower limit number of bundles of the stored small bundles W of 1,000 yen notes in the small-bundle storage section 111(B) is set to 3 bundles, and the lower limit number of loose banknotes in the loose banknote storage section of the first unit 1 is set to 300 notes. Note that these settings are just an example and are not limited to this. Also, the number of small bundles W that can be held in reserve at once in the small-denomination banknote accumulation space 85 is 10 bundles.

[0087] First, when starting the first transaction, which is a small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, the control unit 65 causes the operation display unit 66 to display that, among the stored small bundles W of the denominations for which withdrawal is requested, there are 5 small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes and 5 small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes. All of the small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes are withdrawable as stored small bundles W that do not require bundling processing, and 4 of the small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes are withdrawable as stored small bundles W that do not require bundling processing, while the remaining 1 bundle is withdrawable as a bundled small bundle W that requires bundling processing. In addition, the control unit 65 causes the operation display unit 66 to display three patterns: whether to withdraw all 5 small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes and 5 small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes, whether to withdraw the maximum possible 5 small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes and 4 small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes within the range where bundling processing is not required, or whether to cancel the withdrawal, and waits for an input on which pattern to use for the withdrawal. Here, the case where the pattern of withdrawing all 5 small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes and 5 small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes is selected will be described. In contrast, if the pattern of withdrawing the maximum possible 5 small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes and 4 small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes within the range where bundling processing is not required is selected, the only difference in the processing is that the bundled small bundle withdrawal process for 1 bundle of 1,000-yen banknotes that requires bundling processing is not performed.

[0088] In the first transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, the control unit 65 controls in a pattern where it executes a stored small bundle withdrawal process of withdrawing 4 stored small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes from the small bundle storage unit 111(B) to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, a bundled small bundle withdrawal process of feeding out loose 1,000-yen banknotes from the loose banknote storage unit of the first unit 1, bundling them in the bundling unit, and withdrawing 1 bundled small bundle W to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, a stored small bundle withdrawal process of withdrawing 5 stored small bundles W of 10,000-yen banknotes from, for example, the small bundle storage unit 111(D) among the small bundle storage units 111(C) and 111(D) to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, and a bundled small bundle replenishment process of feeding out loose 1,000-yen banknotes from the loose banknote storage unit of the first unit 1, bundling them in the bundling unit, and replenishing 3 bundled small bundles W of 1,000-yen banknotes to the small bundle storage unit 111(B).

[0089] In the operation display unit 66, as the first transaction of the small-denomination banknote withdrawal process, when the number of bundles of ¥10,000 banknotes in 5 bundles and the number of bundles of ¥1,000 banknotes in 5 bundles are input as the withdrawal request quantity, and an operation indicating that all the small-denomination banknotes W are to be withdrawn and a start operation are input, the control unit 65 determines the above pattern. First, as shown by the thick line in FIG. 18, in order to perform a storage bundle withdrawal process of retaining 4 bundles of the storage bundles W of ¥1,000 banknotes in the small-denomination bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, in the storage bundle unit 111(B), after the pair of flappers 116 are opened downward, the stage 117 is raised, and the uppermost 1st bundle of the storage bundles W of ¥1,000 banknotes placed on the stage 117 is projected into the small-denomination horizontal conveyance unit 131. In parallel with this, as shown by the thick line in FIG. 10, the control unit 65 performs a bound bundle withdrawal process of retaining 1 bundle of the bound bundles W of ¥1,000 banknotes in the small-denomination bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 and a bound bundle replenishment process of replenishing 3 bundles of the bound bundles W of ¥1,000 banknotes to the storage bundle unit 111(B) later. That is, the control unit 65 starts feeding out the loose ¥1,000 banknotes from the loose banknote storage unit in the first unit 1 and starts the operation of creating the bound bundles W of ¥1,000 banknotes. That is, the control unit 65 performs in parallel a storage bundle withdrawal process of withdrawing the storage bundles W of ¥1,000 banknotes stored in the storage bundle unit 111(B) to the small-denomination bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 and a bound bundle creation process of creating the bound bundles W at the binding part from the loose ¥1,000 banknotes stored in the loose banknote storage unit in the first unit 1. The bound bundle creation process is part of the bound bundle withdrawal process and part of the bound bundle replenishment process.

[0090] In the case of the storage bundle withdrawal process, as described above, in parallel with protruding the topmost bundle of the storage bundle W of ¥1,000 bills placed on the stage 117 of the bundle storage unit 111(B) into the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, the control unit 65 lowers the stage 92 of the placement unit 91 to the second position P22. Then, when the topmost bundle of the storage bundle W in the bundle storage unit 111(B) is protruded into the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, the control unit 65 rotates the endless belt 132 so that the crossbar portion 133 protruding downward moves forward. Then, the topmost bundle W of this ¥1,000 bills is pressed by the crossbar portion 133 of the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 and conveyed forward. During this process, the bill type and the bound state, etc. are confirmed by the bundle identification unit 135. As a result, if there is no abnormality, the control unit 65 causes the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 to convey the topmost bundle W of this ¥1,000 bills to the predetermined position at the front end, and then the ejection mechanism 141 ejects the topmost bundle W of this ¥1,000 bills forward. Then, the topmost bundle W of this ¥1,000 bills is placed on the stage 92 at the second position P22. Note that the control unit 65, at the timing when the crossbar portion 133 that conveys the topmost bundle W of this ¥1,000 bills forward passes over the bundle storage unit 111(B), protrudes the second bundle, which is at the topmost position at this time, of the storage bundle W of ¥1,000 bills placed on the stage 117 of the bundle storage unit 111(B) into the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. Then, the storage bundle W of the second bundle of this ¥1,000 bills is conveyed forward by the next crossbar portion 133 in the same manner as the first bundle and reaches the predetermined position at the front end.

[0091] Here, when the control unit 65 detects an abnormality in the denomination of the ten-thousand-yen banknotes in the storage bundle W detected by the bundle identification unit 135, the control unit 65 rotates the pair of flappers 126 of the bundle collection cassette unit 121 downward to the open state, raises the stage 127, and as shown by the thick dashed line in FIG. 18, places the storage bundle W of the ten-thousand-yen banknotes on the stage 127 by the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. Then, the stage 127 is lowered, and the pair of flappers 126 is rotated upward to the closed state. And in the first transaction, the control unit 65 will additionally dispense the corresponding bundle of banknotes W. In this specific example, since there is no storage bundle W of additional one-thousand-yen banknotes in the bundle storage unit 111(B), the control unit 65 will additionally dispense the bound bundle W in the first transaction. Note that the storage bundle W of different denominations temporarily stored in the bundle collection cassette unit 121 in this way will be collectively transferred from the bundle collection cassette unit 121 to the appropriate denomination in the bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D) by the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 at the end of the first transaction. The denomination difference is caused by the operator's misloading of the bundle of banknotes W into the bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D). When the bundle identification unit 135 detects an abnormality in the bundle of banknotes W, the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 may be stopped at that time, and the operation display unit 66 may be caused to perform an error notification including the location of the abnormal bundle of banknotes W. Especially when the abnormality is a poor binding, control is performed in this way.

[0092] When the delivery mechanism 141 pushes out the first storage bundle W of one-thousand-yen banknotes in front of the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 and places it on the stage 92 at the second position P22 as shown in FIG. 21, the control unit 65 raises the stage 92 above the pair of flappers 82. Then, as shown in FIG. 22, during the raising process, the first storage bundle W of one-thousand-yen banknotes on the stage 92 causes the pair of flappers 82 to open upward and pass through. After the first storage bundle W passes through, the pair of flappers 82 will close by the spring and return to the closed position P11. After the control unit 65 raises the stage 92 to a predetermined upper position, it then lowers it to the second position P22 as shown in FIG. 23. During this lowering process, the stage 92 places the first storage bundle W of one-thousand-yen banknotes on the pair of flappers 82 arranged at the closed position P11 and then reaches the second position P22.

[0093] Next, the control unit 65 causes the delivery mechanism 141 to push out the second stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills that is conveyed to the predetermined front end position following the first bundle by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. Then, the second stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills is placed on the stage 92 at the second position P22. Note that the control unit 65 causes the topmost third bundle among the stored small bundles W of 1000-yen bills placed on the stage 117 of the small bundle storage unit 111(B) to protrude into the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 at the timing when the bar portion 133 that conveys the second stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills forward passes over the small bundle storage unit 111(B). Then, the third stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills is conveyed forward in the same manner as the first and second bundles by the next bar portion 133 and reaches the predetermined front end position. Note that the control unit 65 controls the rotation and stop of the endless belt 132 so that interference does not occur between the plurality of stored small bundles W at the predetermined front end position.

[0094] When the delivery mechanism 141 pushes out the second stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills forward and places it on the stage 92 at the second position P22, the control unit 65 raises the stage 92 to above the pair of flaps 82 in the same manner as in the case of the first stored small bundle W. Then, on the way, the second stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills on the stage 92 passes through the pair of flaps 82 while causing the pair of flaps 82 to open upward and placing the first stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills thereon. After the second stored small bundle W has passed through, the pair of flaps 82 closes and returns to the closed position P11. The control unit 65 raises the stage 92 to a predetermined upper position and then lowers it directly to the second position P22. On the way, the stage 92 is positioned at the second position P22 after placing the second stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills on the pair of flaps 82 and placing the first stored small bundle W of 1000-yen bills thereon.

[0095] Next, the control unit 65 causes the delivery mechanism 141 to push out the third small bundle of banknotes W of 1000-yen bills that is conveyed to the predetermined front end position following the second bundle by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 and place it on the stage 92.

[0096] By appropriately repeating the above steps, when the four-bundle stack W of one-thousand-yen bills stored in the small-bundle storage section 111(B) is placed in a stacked state on the pair of flaps 82 in the order of the fourth bundle from the bottom, the third bundle, the second bundle, and the first bundle, the control unit 65 finishes the small-bundle withdrawal process for the four-bundle stack W of one-thousand-yen bills. Subsequently, as part of the process of the bound-bundle withdrawal process for the bound-bundle W of one-thousand-yen bills, the stage 92 is positioned at the third position. After this bound-bundle withdrawal process, a small-bundle withdrawal process for the five-bundle stack W of ten-thousand-yen bills will be performed. Therefore, when the stack portion 133 that conveys the fourth-bundle stack W of one-thousand-yen bills forward passes over the small-bundle storage section 111(B), the control unit 65 lowers the stage 117 of the small-bundle storage section 111(B), closes the pair of flaps 116 of the small-bundle storage section 111(B), and when the stack portion 133 that conveys the fourth-bundle stack W of one-thousand-yen bills forward passes over the small-bundle storage section 111(D), the control unit 65 opens the pair of flaps 116 of the small-bundle storage section 111(D) downward and projects the first bundle at the uppermost position among the stack W of ten-thousand-yen bills placed on the stage 117 of the small-bundle storage section 111(D) into the small-bundle horizontal conveyance section 131. Then, the first-bundle stack W of ten-thousand-yen bills is similarly conveyed forward by the next stack portion 133 and reaches the predetermined front-end position. Also in this case, the control unit 65 controls the rotation and stop of the endless belt 132 so that there is no interference between the multiple stack W at the predetermined front-end position. Following the first-bundle stack W of ten-thousand-yen bills, the subsequent stack portions 133 also convey the stack W of the second and subsequent bundles of ten-thousand-yen bills to the predetermined front-end position in order.

[0097] In the first transaction, in the bound-bundle creation process of the bound-bundle withdrawal process that started at the start of the small-bundle withdrawal process as described above, the first unit 1 creates the first bound-bundle W and sends it to the small-bundle receiving section 101 of the second unit 2. At this time, the control unit 65 lowers the small-bundle receiving section 101 that has received the first bound-bundle W to the lower limit position. In the first transaction, since one bound-bundle W is required for withdrawal and three bound-bundles are required for replenishment, within a range where there is no interference with the first bound-bundle W, the second, third, and fourth bound-bundles W are sequentially created in the first unit 1 and sent to the small-bundle receiving section 101 of the second unit 2.

[0098] When the bundle receiving unit 101 that has received the first bound small bundle W is lowered to the lower limit position, the control unit 65 waits until the stage 92 is in the third position if the stage 92 is not in the third position. On the other hand, when the stage 92 is in the third position and when waiting and the stage 92 comes to be in the third position, the bundle receiving unit 101 is moved forward to send out the first bound small bundle W onto the stage 92. Then, the control unit 65 returns the bundle receiving unit 101 to the upper receiving position along the reverse route and raises the stage 92 above the pair of flappers 82. Then, on the way, the first bound banknote bundle W of 1,000-yen banknotes on the stage 92, that is, the fifth small bundle banknote W of the 1,000-yen banknotes to be paid out, will place the first to fourth stored small bundles W while causing the pair of flappers 82 to open upward, and then pass through the pair of flappers 82. As a result, the pair of flappers 82 performs a closing operation and returns to the closed position P11. When the control unit 65 raises the stage 92 above the pair of flappers 82, it then descends to the second position P22 as part of the process of the stored small bundle payout process for the stored small bundle W of 10,000-yen banknotes. On the way, the stage 92 places the first bound small bundle W and the fourth to first stored small bundles W on the pair of flappers 82 in this order and then is positioned at the second position P22. In this way, the small bundle banknote W of five bundles of 1,000-yen banknotes is grouped together in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71.

[0099] Next, the control unit 65 causes the delivery mechanism 141 to push out the first storage bundle W of ten-thousand-yen bills, which is conveyed to a predetermined position at the front end following the fourth storage bundle W of one-thousand-yen bills by the small-bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, and places it on the stage 92 at the second position P22. Then, the control unit 65 raises the stage 92 above the pair of flaps 82. Then, on the way, the first storage bundle W of ten-thousand-yen bills on the stage 92 passes through the pair of flaps 82 after placing the small-bundle banknotes W of five bundles of one-thousand-yen bills while causing the pair of flaps 82 to open upward. As a result, the pair of flaps 82 closes and returns to the closed position P11. When the control unit 65 raises the stage 92 above the pair of flaps 82, it then lowers the stage 92 directly to the second position P22. On the way, after placing the first storage bundle W of ten-thousand-yen bills and the small-bundle banknotes W of five bundles of one-thousand-yen bills on the pair of flaps 82, the stage 92 is positioned at the second position P22. Then, the control unit 65 causes the delivery mechanism 141 to push out the second small-bundle banknotes W of ten-thousand-yen bills, which is conveyed to a predetermined position at the front end following the first storage bundle W of ten-thousand-yen bills by the small-bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, and places it on the stage 92.

[0100] By appropriately repeating the above steps, as shown in FIG. 24, the five storage bundles W of ten-thousand-yen bills stored in the small-bundle storage unit 111(D) are placed on the stage 92 in an aggregated state, and on top of that, the small-bundle banknotes W of five bundles of one-thousand-yen bills are placed together. After that, the control unit 65 stops the stage 92 at a predetermined withdrawal position above the pair of flaps 82, opens the shutter 81, and moves the pair of second-side guides 863 to the retracted position P32 (see FIG. 5). As a result, these ten small-bundle banknotes W in the small-bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 are taken out of the machine.

[0101] When the control unit 65 detects with a sensor (not shown in detail) that all the bound banknotes W in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 have been taken out of the machine, it closes the shutter 81 and then, as part of the bound bundle replenishment process for the three bound bundles of 1,000-yen bills included in the first transaction, positions the stage 92 at the third position. Then, as part of the bound bundle replenishment process, the control unit 65 receives the first bound bundle W of 1,000-yen bills to be replenished, moves the small bundle receiving unit 101, which is located at the lower limit position, forward, and sends out the first bound bundle W of 1,000-yen bills to be replenished onto the stage 92. Then, the control unit 65 returns the small bundle receiving unit 101 to the upper receiving position and lowers the stage 92 to the second position P22.

[0102] Next, the control unit 65 rotates the endless belt 132 of the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 so that the crossbar 133 protruding downward moves backward. For the small bundle storage unit 111(B), the control unit 65 causes the pair of flaps 116 to open downward, raises the stage 117 to the position where it receives the bound bundle W from the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, and uses the extrusion mechanism 151 to extrude the first bound bundle W of 1,000-yen bills to be replenished on the stage 92 toward the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. Then, the crossbar 133 of the endless belt 132 conveys the first bound bundle W of 1,000-yen bills to be replenished backward and places it on the stage 117 of the small bundle storage unit 111(B). Then, the control unit 65 lowers the stage 117 to the position where it receives the bound bundle W from the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 above the first bound bundle W of 1,000-yen bills to be replenished.

[0103] When the first bound small bundle W of ¥1,000 bills to be replenished on the stage 92 is pushed out by the pushing mechanism 151 toward the small bundle horizontal conveying section 131, the control unit 65 raises the stage 92 to the third position. Then, the control unit 65 receives the second bound small bundle W of ¥1,000 bills to be replenished, moves the small bundle receiving section 101 located at the lower limit position forward, and sends out the second bound small bundle W of ¥1,000 bills to be replenished onto the stage 92. Then, the control unit 65 returns the small bundle receiving section 101 to the upper receiving position and lowers the stage 92 to the second position P22, and causes the pushing mechanism 151 to push out the second bound small bundle W of ¥1,000 bills to be replenished on the stage 92 toward the small bundle horizontal conveying section 131.

[0104] By repeating the above as appropriate, when the third bound small bundle W of ¥1,000 bills to be replenished is placed on the second bound small bundle W of ¥1,000 bills to be replenished on the stage 117 in the small bundle storage section 111(B), the control unit 65 lowers the stage 117 of the small bundle storage section 111(B) and closes the pair of flaps 116 of the small bundle storage section 111(B) to return them to the closed position P11.

[0105] In addition, when it is necessary to replenish the bound small bundles W of ¥10,000 bills to the small bundle storage sections 111(C) and 111(D) as well, following the replenishment to the small bundle storage section 111(B) described above, the bound small bundles W will be replenished to the small bundle storage sections 111(C) and 111(D). In the bound small bundle replenishment process, the order of the denominations of the bound banknotes W to be replenished to the small bundle storage sections 111(B) to 111(D) may be either the ¥1,000 bill small bundles or the ¥10,000 bill small bundles first.

[0106] When the end bundle replenishment process is completed, if there are storage bundles W of different denominations temporarily stored in the bundle collection cassette unit 121, the control unit 65 will, at the end of the first transaction, collectively transfer from the bundle collection cassette unit 121 to the appropriate denomination in the bundle storage units 111(A) - 111(D) by the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. Specifically, the control unit 65 first operates the pair of flaps 126 of the bundle collection cassette unit 121 to open downward, then raises the stage 117 to project the storage bundle W at the uppermost position on the stage 117 into the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, and then rotates the endless belt 132 of the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 so that the crossbar 133 protruding downward moves rearward. As a result, the crossbar 133 conveys the storage bundle W at the uppermost position of the bundle collection cassette unit 121 rearward. During this process, the bundle identification unit 135 performs identification, and based on the result, the receiving one of the bundle storage units 111(A) - 111(D) operates the pair of flaps 116 to open downward, raises the stage 117 to the position where it can receive the bound bundle W from the bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, and places it on the stage 117. By appropriately performing such operations, the control unit 65 stores the storage bundles W of different denominations temporarily stored in the bundle collection cassette unit 121 in the appropriate denominations in the bundle storage units 111(A) - 111(D).

[0107] Then, when each unit returns to the standby state, the control unit 65 ends the first transaction of the bundle banknote dispensing process. In this first transaction of the bundle banknote dispensing process, when a start operation is input to the operation display unit 66, if the process proceeds normally until the end of this first transaction, the process will proceed without any operation input to the operation display unit 66 during that time.

[0108] As described above, the stage 92 of the second unit 2 conveys the stored bundle W and the bundled bundle W toward the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71. With respect to this stage 92, the bundled bundle W is sent out from the third position by the small bundle receiving unit 101, and the stored bundle W is sent out from the second position P22 different from this third position by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 and the sending mechanism 141, so as to merge the small bundle banknotes W of multiple denominations for each denomination. At this time, every time one bundle of small bundle banknotes W is placed on the stage 92, the control unit 65 moves the stage 92 to the upper position, so as to merge multiple bundles of small bundle banknotes W in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71. Further, the control unit 65, after delivering the bundled bundle W from the small bundle receiving unit 101 to the stage 92 at the third position, sends out the bundled bundle W from the stage 92 toward the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) by the extrusion mechanism 151 at the second position P22.

[0109] In addition, in the above specific example, the case where the small bundle banknotes W are withdrawn within the range that can be held at the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 at one time is taken as an example for explanation. However, when the small bundle banknotes W are withdrawn beyond the range that can be held at the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 at one time, when the control unit 65 starts one transaction of the small bundle banknote withdrawal process, if the withdrawal of the small bundle banknotes W in the transaction is instructed across multiple denominations, the small bundle banknotes W are withdrawn for each denomination so that they can be taken out of the machine by the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71. That is, for example, when starting one transaction of the small bundle banknote withdrawal process, if the withdrawal of the small bundle banknotes W in the transaction is 8 bundles of 1000-yen banknotes and 15 bundles of 10000-yen banknotes, with the shutter 81 closed, first, for example, 8 bundles of 1000-yen small bundle banknotes W are held at the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, then the shutter 81 is opened so that the 8 bundles of 1000-yen small bundle banknotes W can be taken out of the machine. When the 8 bundles of 1000-yen small bundle banknotes W are taken out of the machine, the shutter 81 is closed, 10 bundles of 10000-yen small bundle banknotes W are held at the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, then the shutter 81 is opened so that the 10 bundles of 10000-yen small bundle banknotes W can be taken out of the machine. When the 10 bundles of 10000-yen small bundle banknotes W are taken out of the machine, the shutter 81 is closed, 5 bundles of 10000-yen small bundle banknotes W are held at the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, then the shutter 81 is opened so that the 5 bundles of 10000-yen small bundle banknotes W can be taken out of the machine.

[0110] Also, for the bundled banknotes W of the same denomination, when performing the stored bundled withdrawal process and the bundled and bound withdrawal process, since the time required for the first bundle of bundled banknotes W to reach the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71 is shorter for the stored bundled withdrawal process than for the bundled and bound withdrawal process, the conveyance of the stored bundle W to the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71 by the stored bundled withdrawal process is performed first as described above, and the conveyance of the bundled and bound bundle W to the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71 by the bundled and bound withdrawal process is performed later.

[0111] Note that although the stored bundles W and the bundled and bound bundles W of the same denomination are grouped together at the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71, they may not be grouped and instead be controlled so that the processing time is minimized and the stored bundles W and the bundled and bound bundles W are held at the bundled deposit / withdrawal unit 71.

[0112] The above described the bundled and bound bundle replenishment process as part of the bundled banknote withdrawal process. However, when a selection operation for the bundled and bound bundle replenishment process is input to the operation display unit 66, the control unit 65 performs the bundled and bound bundle replenishment process independently. In this case, the bundled and bound bundles W that cannot be fully stored in the bundled storage units 111(B) to 111(D) are stored in the bundled storage unit 111(A).

[0113] In the above bundled banknote withdrawal process, the control unit 65 selects and determines one of the following operation patterns. Based on the determined operation pattern, the control unit 65 performs the processing.

[0114] [Pattern of withdrawing only the stored bundle W and ending the bundled banknote withdrawal process] The condition for the control unit 65 to select this pattern is that the bundled storage unit 111(B) and the bundled storage units 111(C) and 111(D) maintain a predetermined storage amount even after withdrawing the stored bundle W.

[0115] [Pattern of replenishing the bundled and bound bundle W to the bundled storage unit 111 after withdrawing only the stored bundle W or after withdrawing both the stored bundle W and the bundled and bound bundle W] The condition for the control unit 65 to select this pattern is that the loose banknotes for creating the bound bundle W to be replenished are secured in the corresponding one of the loose banknote storage units of the first unit 1 even after the loose banknote withdrawal process is completed (however, excluding the predetermined number of banknotes that need to be left in the corresponding one of the loose banknote storage units).

[0116] [Pattern of not replenishing the bound bundle W to the small bundle storage unit 111 after only withdrawing the stored bundle W or after withdrawing both the stored bundle W and the bound bundle W] The condition for the control unit 65 to select this pattern is when the loose banknotes for creating the bound bundle W to be replenished are not secured in the corresponding one of the loose banknote storage units of the first unit 1 after the loose banknote withdrawal process is completed. In this case, since the remaining amount of the small bundle storage unit 111 becomes 0, an empty state of the small bundle storage unit 111 is notified.

[0117] [Pattern of only withdrawing the bound bundle W] The condition for the control unit 65 to select this pattern is when the small bundle banknotes W of the required denomination are not stored in the small bundle storage unit 111 (the small bundle storage unit 111 is in an empty state). At the time when the loose banknote withdrawal process is completed, if the loose banknotes to be left in the corresponding one of the loose banknote storage units of the first unit 1 are other than the predetermined number and the number of banknotes (in units of 100) sufficient to create the bound bundle W is secured, an operation of creating the bound bundle W and replenishing it to the small bundle storage unit 111 may be performed. Also, when the loose banknote storage unit has less than the predetermined number at the time when the loose banknote withdrawal process is completed, the user may be notified of this fact by the operation display unit 66 and approval may be obtained in advance before performing the bound bundle withdrawal process. Further, after the completion of the loose banknote withdrawal process, the near-empty (or empty) state of the loose banknote storage unit may be notified by the operation display unit 66.

[0118] The control unit 65 may be configured to determine the presence or absence of bundling of loose banknotes W by denomination for withdrawing loose banknotes in a bundled manner for each denomination during the loose banknote withdrawal process through a selection operation on the operation display unit 66.

[0119] [Small Bundle Banknote Loading Process] The thick line in Fig. 25 indicates the banknote conveyance route in the small bundle banknote loading process of storing (depositing) small bundle banknotes W from outside the machine into the small bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D) based on the small bundle banknote loading operation input to the operation display unit 66.

[0120] When a small bundle banknote storage operation is input to the operation display unit 66, the control unit 65 lowers the stage 92 in the standby state to position it at the first position P21 that aligns with the pair of flaps 82, and then opens the shutter 81. Also, as shown in Fig. 27, the control unit 65 moves the pair of second side guides 863 to the retracted position P32. Then, when small bundle banknotes W are loaded into the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 through the opening 85A and a start operation is input to the operation display unit 66, the control unit 65 closes the shutter 81 and moves the pair of second side guides 863 from the retracted position P32 to the support position P31 (see Fig. 5). The pair of second side guides 863 adjust the stacked state of the small bundle banknotes W loaded in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 by moving to the support position P31. The following will explain this point.

[0121] When the pair of second side guides 863 are moved from the retracted position P32 to the support position P31, the small bundle banknotes W are sandwiched between the first side guide 862 and the pair of second side guides 863 in the short side direction (front - rear direction), and are sandwiched between the pair of side guides 861 in the long side direction (left - right direction) of the small bundle banknotes W. As a result, even if the small bundle banknotes W are loaded in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 in an oblique posture, the inclination of the long side direction of the small bundle banknotes W with respect to the left - right direction of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 becomes smaller or disappears, and the inclination of the short side direction of the small bundle banknotes W with respect to the front - rear direction of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 becomes smaller or disappears, so that the oblique posture of the small bundle banknotes W is corrected. Therefore, the stacked state of the small bundle banknotes W loaded in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 can be adjusted. That is, the small bundle banknotes W can be made to be in an aligned state in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85.

[0122] In addition, if the small bundle of banknotes W does not become aligned even after performing the operation of the second surface guide 863 described above, for example, based on the detection result of the posture of the small bundle of banknotes W by the posture detection sensor 87 (see FIG. 4), the operation of the second surface guide 863 may be performed multiple times. Further, if the small bundle of banknotes W does not become aligned, the control unit 65 interrupts the deposit process based on, for example, the detection result of the posture detection sensor 87, and notifies the non-aligned state (diagonal posture state) of the small bundle of banknotes W by the operation display unit 66 or the like, and may cause the user to confirm the loading state of the small bundle of banknotes W.

[0123] As shown in FIG. 28, after moving the pair of second surface guides 863 to the support position P31, the control unit 65, as shown in FIG. 29, rotates the pair of flappers 82 downward by the flapper motor 824 (see FIGS. 6 and 7) to position them at the second open position P13, and then lowers the stage 92 and stops it at the second position P22. Then, the control unit 65 rotates the endless belt 132 of the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 so that the crosspiece 133 protruding downward moves rearward, and the extruding mechanism 151 extrudes the small bundle of banknotes W on the stage 92 toward the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131.

[0124] Here, a procedure for extruding a plurality of bundles of small bundles of banknotes W stacked on the stage 92 toward the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 by the extruding mechanism 151 will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 29, the bill press 88 is lowered to sandwich a plurality of bundles of small bundles of banknotes W between the bill press 88 and the stage 92 at the second position P22. Next, as shown in FIG. 30, the extruding mechanism 151 extrudes the lowermost (lowest value) small bundle of banknotes W toward the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. At this time, since the lowermost small bundle of banknotes W is pressed downward by the small bundle of banknotes W overlapping above and the bill press 88, the lowermost small bundle of banknotes W can be sent out neatly from the stage 92 toward the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131.

[0125] After the lowest-denomination bundled banknotes W are sent out to the bundled horizontal conveyance unit 131, as shown in FIG. 31, the remaining bundled banknotes W on the stage 92 fall by their own weight. At this time, since the building press 88 is maintained at the position before pushing out the lowest-denomination bundled banknotes W, it is positioned at an interval above the bundled banknotes W remaining on the stage 92. Also, in this state, the pushing bar 152 of the pushing mechanism 151 is positioned behind the stage 92.

[0126] After that, as shown in FIG. 32, by raising the stage 92, the remaining bundled banknotes W stacked on the stage 92 are moved above the pushing bar 152 of the pushing mechanism 151 so that the bundled banknotes W on the stage 92 do not interfere with the movement path of the pushing bar 152 of the pushing mechanism 151 from the rear side to the front side of the stage 92. At this time, the building press 88 is also raised. In FIG. 32, the building press 88 is in contact with the upper end of the bundled banknotes W on the stage 92, but for example, it may be positioned at an interval above the upper end of the bundled banknotes W.

[0127] After that, the pushing bar 152 of the pushing mechanism 151 is returned to the position on the front side of the stage 92 (the position shown in FIG. 29), and the stage 92 is lowered to the second position P22. Also, the building press 88 is lowered to sandwich the bundled banknotes W between the building press 88 and the stage 92 at the second position P22. By repeating the above-described operations, a plurality of bundles of bundled banknotes W can be pushed out from the stage 92 one by one toward the bundled horizontal conveyance unit 131.

[0128] The bundled banknotes W pushed out to the bundled horizontal conveyance unit 131 by the pushing mechanism 151 as described above are conveyed backward by the rail part 133 of the bundled horizontal conveyance unit 131. During this conveyance, the bundled identification unit 135 discriminates the denomination and the like, and based on the result, stores them in the corresponding ones of the bundled storage units 111(A) to 111(D).

[0129] Here, for the small bundle of banknotes W in which an abnormality is detected by the small bundle identification unit 135, the endless belt 132 is rotated in the reverse direction and temporarily stored in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 as shown by the thick dashed line in Fig. 25. When an abnormality of the small bundle of banknotes W is detected by the small bundle identification unit 135, the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 may be stopped at that time, and an error notification including the location of the abnormal small bundle of banknotes W may be given to the operation display unit 66.

[0130] After appropriately repeating the above to load the small bundle of banknotes W, when an operation indicating the end of the small bundle of banknotes loading process is input to the operation display unit 66, the control unit 65, at the end of the small bundle of banknotes loading process, as shown by the thick dashed-dotted line in Fig. 25, conveys the small bundle of banknotes W from the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 forward by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, feeds it out onto the stage 92 at the second position P22 by the delivery mechanism 141, raises the stage 92 to the payout position, and holds it in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71. When all are held in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, the control unit 65 opens the shutter 81 to make it removable outside the machine and returns it.

[0131] [Storage Small Bundle Recovery Process] The thick line in Fig. 26 shows the banknote conveyance route in the storage small bundle recovery process of storing and recovering the small bundle of banknotes W in the small bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D) in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 based on the small bundle of banknotes recovery operation input to the operation display unit 66.

[0132] When a small bundle banknote collection operation is input to the operation display unit 66, the control unit 65, as shown by the thick solid line in FIG. 26, moves the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) in a predetermined order, and moves each small bundle banknote W forward from the uppermost one by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131. While being identified by the small bundle identification unit 135, the normal ones are stored in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121, and the abnormal ones are conveyed to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, the delivery mechanism 141, and the stage 92 and held there, as shown by the thick solid line to thick broken line in FIG. 26. Then, when all the small bundle banknotes W in the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) are conveyed to the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 or the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, the abnormal small bundle banknotes W held in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 are stored in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 by the stage 92, the extrusion mechanism 151, and the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, as shown by the thick dashed-dotted line in FIG. 26. As a result, the normal small bundle banknotes W are bundled together downward and the abnormal small bundle banknotes W are bundled together upward and stored in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121. Then, the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 together with the small bundle banknotes W is taken out of the machine.

[0133] In addition, after storing the normal small bundle banknotes W in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 and taking out the normal small bundle banknotes W together with the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 out of the machine, another empty small bundle collection cassette unit 121 may be set, and the abnormal small bundle banknotes W may be stored in this small bundle collection cassette unit 121 from the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71, and then the abnormal small bundle banknotes W together with this small bundle collection cassette unit 121 may be taken out of the machine. Also, without being identified by the small bundle identification unit 135, all the small bundle banknotes W in the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) may be stored in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 and taken out of the machine.

[0134] [Small Bundle Full Collection Process] When the control unit 65 selects and inputs the small bundle full recovery operation by an operation on the operation display unit 66, it will execute the small bundle full recovery processing mode. In this small bundle full recovery processing mode, all the stored small bundles W in the small bundle storage unit 111 for a single denomination among the small bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D) are transported to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 by the small bundle horizontal transport unit 131, the delivery mechanism 141, and the stage 92. After that, among the loose bill storage units of the first unit 1, the recovery operation of creating the bundled small bundle W as much as possible at the bundling part from the loose bills stored in the loose bill storage unit for the single denomination and transporting it to the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 is performed for all denominations by denomination. As a result, for example, the stored small bundle W and the bundled small bundle W of 1000-yen bills are grouped together and temporarily stored in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 one or more times and then taken out outside the machine. After that, the stored small bundle W and the bundled small bundle W of 10,000-yen bills are grouped together and temporarily stored in the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 one or more times and then taken out outside the machine.

[0135] [Small bundle banknote inspection processing] In the second unit 2, based on the small bundle banknote inspection operation input to the operation display unit 66, the inspection forward path processing of the small bundle banknote inspection processing for temporarily storing the small bundle banknotes W of the objects to be inspected in the small bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D) in the small bundle recovery cassette unit 121 is performed. Also, the inspection return path processing of the small bundle banknote inspection processing for returning the small bundle banknotes W temporarily stored in the small bundle recovery cassette unit 121 to the corresponding ones in the small bundle storage units 111(B) to 111(D) while being identified by the small bundle identification unit 135 is performed.

[0136] When an inspection operation for a small bundle of banknotes is input to the operation display unit 66, the control unit 65, for a predetermined one of the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D), as an inspection forward path process, moves the small bundle of banknotes W forward from the topmost one by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131 and stores it in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121. In this way, all the small bundles of banknotes W in this small bundle storage unit 111 are stored in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121. Then, as an inspection return path process, the control unit 65 moves the small bundle of banknotes W in the small bundle collection cassette unit 121 backward from the topmost one by the small bundle horizontal conveyance unit 131, and while identifying it with the small bundle identification unit 135, stores it in the small bundle storage unit 111 based on the identification result. Thereafter, for the other small bundle storage units 111, by performing the inspection forward path process and the inspection return path process in order, the breakdown of the small bundles of banknotes W stored in each of the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D) is grasped.

[0137] As a result, when the current inspection result matches the in - machine quantity being managed, the control unit 65 displays the inspection result on the display and ends the small bundle banknote inspection process.

[0138] On the other hand, when the current inspection result differs from the in - machine quantity being managed, the control unit 65 displays the discrepancy in the in - machine quantity via the operation display unit 66. Then, regarding the approval of updating the in - machine quantity with the current inspection result as the new in - machine quantity, it prompts the user for input. When the user inputs approval of the in - machine quantity update to the operation display unit 66, the in - machine quantity is updated to the current inspection result and the self - inspection process is ended.

[0139] In the above description, the small bundle identification unit 135 is made to identify the small bundle banknote W in the recheck return process. Instead, for example, the small bundle identification unit 135 may be made to identify the small bundle banknote W during the recheck forward process. At this time, the small bundle identification unit 135 may determine not only the denomination of the small bundle banknote W but also the presence or absence of a binding band. By doing so, it becomes possible to early detect abnormal conditions such as damage to the binding band or the detachment of the binding band due to poor binding associated with the small bundle banknotes W fed out from the small bundle storage units 111(A) to 111(D). Since transporting the small bundle banknotes W in an abnormal state may cause a transport jam, after detecting the small bundle banknotes W in the abnormal state, the control unit 65 immediately stops the transport drive of the small bundle horizontal transport unit 131 and notifies the operation display unit 66 to perform an abnormal recovery process operation for the user to recover the small bundle banknotes W in the abnormal state from inside the machine.

[0140] In the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment described above, the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 includes a first surface guide 862 that supports the end surface on the back side in the short side direction of the small bundle banknotes W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, a support position P31 that supports the end surface on the front side in the short side direction of the small bundle banknotes W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, and a second surface guide 863 that is movable between a retracted position P32 that does not support the end surface on the front side of the small bundle banknotes W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85.

[0141] Therefore, when the user inserts and sets the small bundle banknotes W into the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, even if the small bundle banknotes W are arranged in an inclined posture, as the second surface guide 863 moves from the retracted position P32 to the support position P31, the small bundle banknotes W are sandwiched between the first surface guide 862 and the second surface guide 863 in the short side direction thereof. Thereby, the inclined posture of the small bundle banknotes W is corrected, and the small bundle banknotes W can be aligned in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. Therefore, when the small bundle banknotes W are transported from the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and delivered to the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 (particularly the small bundle horizontal transport unit 131), it is possible to suppress the occurrence of capture failure based on the inclined posture of the small bundle banknotes W. As a result, it is possible to provide a banknote processing apparatus 11 that is convenient for the user.

[0142] Further, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, in a state where the second surface guide 863 is disposed at the retracted position P32, it is positioned so as not to cover the opening 85A of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85. Thereby, by disposing the second surface guide 863 at the retracted position P32, the small bundle banknote W can be easily taken in and out of the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 through the opening 85A without being obstructed by the second surface guide 863.

[0143] Further, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, a placement unit 91 for placing the small bundle banknote W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 has a stage 92 that is movable in the vertical direction between the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and a deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 provided below it. Further, when the small bundle banknote W is withdrawn, the stage 92 supports the small bundle banknote W withdrawn by the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 and moves upward to convey the small bundle banknote W to the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, and when the small bundle banknote W is deposited, the stage 92 supports the small bundle banknote W stored in the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85 and moves downward to convey the small bundle banknote W to the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73. Therefore, by moving the stage 92 in the vertical direction with the small bundle banknote W placed on the stage 92, the small bundle banknote W can be conveyed between the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 and the small bundle deposit / withdrawal unit 71 by the stage 92. Thereby, the deposit and withdrawal of the small bundle banknote W with respect to the banknote processing apparatus 11 can be surely performed.

[0144] Further, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, a bill press 88 that is movable in the vertical direction independently of the stage 92 and can sandwich the small bundle banknote W between it and the stage 92 is provided. By sandwiching the small bundle banknote W placed on the stage 92 between the bill press 88, the small bundle banknote W can be orderly sent out from the stage 92 toward the small bundle storage unit 111 by an extrusion mechanism 151 or the like. In particular, the last small bundle banknote W placed on the stage 92 can be orderly sent out.

[0145] Also, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, the small bundle storage unit 111 is positioned offset rearward (on one side in the first orthogonal direction) with respect to the small bundle banknote accumulation space 85, and the bill press 88 sandwiches a rearward (on one side in the first orthogonal direction) portion of the small bundle of banknotes W placed on the stage 92 between itself and the stage 92. Therefore, the last small bundle of banknotes W placed on the stage 92 can be neatly sent rearward from the stage 92 toward the small bundle storage unit 111. Hereinafter, this point will be described.

[0146] When the bill press 88 is pressed against only a partial area of the last small bundle of banknotes W placed on the stage 92, the portion of the small bundle of banknotes W that is not pressed by the bill press 88 is likely to bulge upward. In contrast, in the above configuration, the bill press 88 is pressed against a rearward (on one side in the first orthogonal direction) portion of the small bundle of banknotes W, that is, the leading end side portion in the direction in which the small bundle of banknotes W is sent toward the small bundle storage unit 111. Thereby, when the small bundle of banknotes W is sent from the stage 92 toward the small bundle storage unit 111 side, it is possible to suppress or prevent the leading end side portion of the small bundle of banknotes W from bulging upward. Therefore, it is possible to suppress or prevent an obstacle from occurring in the feeding of the small bundle of banknotes W from the stage 92 to the small bundle storage unit 111 due to the upward bulge of the small bundle of banknotes W.

[0147] Also, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, the bill press 88 sandwiches both end portions in the left - right direction (second linear direction orthogonal to the first linear direction when viewed from the up - down direction) of the small bundle of banknotes W placed on the stage 92 between itself and the stage 92. Therefore, when the extrusion mechanism 151 sends the last small bundle of banknotes W from the stage 92 toward the small bundle storage unit 111, even if the pair of extrusion bars 152 of the extrusion mechanism 151 are pressed against both end portions in the left - right direction of the small bundle of banknotes W, it is possible to prevent both end portions in the left - right direction of the small bundle of banknotes W from bulging upward. Thereby, the small bundle of banknotes W can be sent from the stage 92 toward the small bundle storage unit 111 by the extrusion mechanism 151 without any trouble.

[0148] Further, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, the deposit / withdrawal mechanism 73 includes an extrusion mechanism 151 that extrudes the small-denomination banknotes W from the stage 92 toward the small-denomination storage unit 111 side, and a delivery mechanism 141 that delivers the small-denomination banknotes W from the small-denomination storage unit 111 side to the stage 92. By these extrusion mechanism 151 and delivery mechanism 141, the transfer of the small-denomination banknotes W between the stage 92 and the small-denomination storage unit 111 can be surely performed.

[0149] Further, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, the placement unit 91 has a pair of flaps 82 located at the lower end of the small-denomination banknote accumulation space 85. The pair of flaps 82 is movable between a closed position P11 that is horizontally arranged and can support the small-denomination banknotes W surrounded in the small-denomination banknote accumulation space 85, and a second open position P13 (open position) that is vertically arranged and does not support the small-denomination banknotes W. By arranging the pair of flaps 82 in the closed position P11, the small-denomination banknotes W stored in the small-denomination banknote accumulation space 85 can be supported and held in the small-denomination banknote accumulation space 85. On the other hand, in a state where the pair of flaps 82 is arranged in the second open position P13, the small-denomination banknotes W and the bill press 88 can move up and down above and below the pair of flaps 82 without interfering with the pair of flaps 82. Also, in a state where the pair of flaps 82 is arranged in the closed position P11, even if the stage 92 forming the placement unit 91 is moved below the small-denomination banknote accumulation space 85, the small-denomination banknotes W can be supported and held in the small-denomination banknote accumulation space 85. That is, the stage 92 can be used for other purposes (for example, for transporting the small-denomination banknotes W in the vertical direction).

[0150] Further, in the banknote processing apparatus 11 of the present embodiment, the stage 92 constituting the placement unit 91 and the pair of flaps 82 are arranged so as not to overlap each other when viewed from the vertical direction. Therefore, even in a state where the pair of flaps 82 is arranged in the closed position P11, the stage 92 can be passed in the vertical direction with respect to the pair of flaps 82. Thereby, the small-denomination banknotes W can be easily transferred from the stage 92 onto the pair of flaps 82 arranged in the closed position P11.

Explanation of Signs

[0151] 11 Banknote processing device 71 Small bundle deposit / withdrawal section 73 Deposit / withdrawal mechanism 82 Flapper 85 Small bundle banknote accumulation space 88 Building press 91 Placing section 92 Stage 111 Small bundle storage section 141 Feeding mechanism 151 Extrusion mechanism 861 Side guide 862 First side guide 863 Second side guide P11 Closed position P13 Second open position (open position) P31 Support position P32 Retracted position W Small bundle banknotes

Claims

1. A stack of banknotes storage space capable of inserting and removing a stack of banknotes, and a stack deposit / withdrawal unit having an opening that opens in one direction to the stack of banknotes storage space, A placement unit located at the lower end of the stack of banknotes storage space and capable of placing the stack of banknotes stored in the stack of banknotes storage space in a vertically stacked state, The placement unit is located at the lower end of the stack of banknotes storage space and has a pair of flaps capable of supporting the stack of banknotes stored in the stack of banknotes storage space from below, The pair of flaps are movable between a closed position arranged to extend horizontally and support the stack of banknotes and an open position arranged to extend downward and not support the stack of banknotes, A banknote processing apparatus characterized by the above.

2. A deposit / withdrawal mechanism is provided below the stack of banknotes storage space for depositing and withdrawing a stack of banknotes, The placement unit has a stage that supports the stack of banknotes from below and is movable in the vertical direction between the stack of banknotes storage space and the deposit / withdrawal mechanism, The deposit / withdrawal mechanism is, One or more stack storage units for receiving and storing the stack of banknotes placed on the stage and capable of sending out the stored stack of banknotes toward the stage, An extrusion mechanism having an extrusion bar provided rotatably, and the stack of banknotes is extruded from the stage toward the stack storage unit side by the rotation of the extrusion bar, The banknote processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized by the above.

3. A deposit / withdrawal mechanism is provided below the stack of banknotes storage space for depositing and withdrawing a stack of banknotes, The placement unit has a stage that supports the stack of banknotes from below and is movable in the vertical direction between the stack of banknotes storage space and the deposit / withdrawal mechanism, The deposit / withdrawal mechanism is, One or more stack storage units for receiving and storing the stack of banknotes placed on the stage and capable of sending out the stored stack of banknotes toward the stage, A sending mechanism for sending out the stack of banknotes from the stack storage unit side to the stage, The sending mechanism is, A base portion, A slide member attached to the base portion so as to be movable in a linear direction in which the stage and the stack storage unit are aligned, A sending arm rotatably attached to the slide member, When sending out a small bundle of banknotes from the side of the small bundle storage unit to the stage, the sending arm is rotated to move one end of the sending arm below the lower end of the base portion, and the slide member is moved toward the stage side in a state where one end of the sending arm protrudes downward from the lower end of the base portion. The banknote processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that.

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