EP0097538A1 - Handling system for an object (key) board - Google Patents

Abstract

@ A combination of objects is achieved by successive automatic markings inviting the attendant to remove or return the objects to their locations. On the panel each object has a location (7) designated by an address and associated with a signaling means (4). The system comprises means (61, 60) for successively memorizing and reading combinations of addresses, means (7L, 7C) for successively energizing the signaling means (4) at the locations designated by the addresses read from the same combination in order to remove or introduce the objects to said locations, and object detection means (7C, 60) in order to verify the presence or normal absence of the objects after the removal or introduction of each object.

Description

The present invention relates to a system for managing a panel of objects such as keys.

In many industries, a large number of keys must be managed. This is particularly the case for the removal of interchangeable removable boxes from a fleet of service distribution devices such as telephone communications (public stations), parking authorization periods (parking meters), games (pinball machines), or apparatus for dispensing products such as photocopies, transport tickets, confectionery items.

• - nombre et répartition géographique des appareils distributeurs ;
• -.vitesse de remplissage des caissettes ;
• - durée nécessaire au retrait de chaque caissette remplie de la recette et à son remplacement par une caissette vide dans le logement d'accès fermé à clé prévu à cet effet dans l'appareil distributeur ;
• - sécurité des recettes collectées notamment pendant le transport des caissettes entre.les appareils distributeurs et le centre de gestion des caissettes (voir à ce sujet par exemple la EP-A-0.041.457).

The lifting of the boxes is divided into rounds, each assigned to an attendant. Lifting rounds are established according to various parameters, which include the following:

• - number and geographic distribution of vending machines;
• - speed of filling of the boxes;
• - time required to remove each box filled with the recipe and to replace it with an empty box in the locked access housing provided for this purpose in the dispenser;
• - security of the receipts collected in particular during the transport of the boxes between the dispensing devices and the box management center (see on this subject for example EP-A-0.041.457).

These various parameters act independently of each other and lead to the fact that the lifting rounds are different from one day to the next and must not be carried out by the same attendant for at least two consecutive days.

From these considerations arises the problem of managing the keys of the access boxes to the cash desks in the devices. reils distributors. Each day, the keys must be carefully stored to be picked up the next day in a specific order for the creation of keyrings, each given to an attendant responsible for a lifting tour. The assignment of keys to routes and therefore to agents must not generate any error in order to determine the agent "defrauding" in the event that the recipe collected in a box turns out to be abnormally weak, for example.

Currently, only a simple wall key panel with nails or hooks is used, each of which has a key to hang. Labels with the key numbers corresponding to those of the dispensing devices are affixed to the panel above the nails. According to other known panels, the nails are replaced by boxes in each of which a key is to be deposited. When setting up the keyrings, a management center operator reads the key numbers of each keyring so that the attendant successively removes the keys. In order to easily identify each of the keys, the spacing between the nails or boxes on the panel must be large and consequently the dimensions of the panel are very large, which makes it difficult for the operator to verify quickly and accurately the keys removed and therefore keys voluntarily removed by the attendant and not belonging to his tour.

According to another known embodiment of a key panel described in patent US-A-4,205,328, each nail is replaced by an opening through which the support is threaded to which a respective key is suspended. The gravity wedging of the support in the he opening activates a blade contact through a permanent magnet rod fixed to the support, and consequently excites a lamp indicating the storage of the key in the panel.

Furthermore, systems are known which assist in the management of articles, for example pharmaceuticals, to be distributed.

The patent US Pat. No. 3,908,800 describes a system for selecting articles which are to be distributed in boxes of a storage trolley. A computer and a memory are provided for reading sequences of data, such as the location of boxes, to excite its indicator lights to prompt the operator to take quantities of items determined in the boxes. However, after removing items from a specific box, the operator must press a button index which indicates the location of the next box.

The article by H.C. NOMMANN entitled "Automatic computer input of inventory counts" published in IBM TECHNICAL DISCLOSURE BULLETIN, volume 21, no. 1, page 299, June 1978, NEW-YORK (US), describes a set of sensors such as weighing scales which are each housed in boxes and which are connected to an inventory control system making it possible to record the weight of items placed in each box. The control system only allows to know the presence or absence of items in the boxes.

The object of the present invention is to provide an object management system and a corresponding panel which make it possible in particular to check the presence or the abnormal absence of objects in the panel as and when each predetermined combination is formed. of objects, such as a bunch of keys to a tour. In addition, the constitution of a combination of objects is carried out continuously by successive automatic tracking inviting the attendant to remove or return the objects to their locations without any errors.

To this end, the subject of the invention is a system for managing a panel of objects as defined in claim 1.

The successive excitations of signaling means, such as light-emitting diodes on the front face of the panel at the locations of the objects, facilitate the visual identification of the objects to be removed or introduced successively and therefore avoid any errors in the constitution of the combinations of objects.

The management system is organized around a microprocessor with conventional peripheral units such as a keyboard, which makes it possible to dissociate the operations of organization of the tours, for example carried out the day before the tours, and the constitution of the combinations of objects such as keyrings.

In order to avoid any error in the affixing of the keys on the panel, as is frequent on a panel with nails or boxes, the panel comprises at each location a receptacle whose opening has a profile similar to a predetermined part of the object; for a key, the receptacle is analogous to a dummy lock.

Advantageously, the means for detecting the presence or. the absence of objects have their states. automatically checked after each normal removal of an object during the constitution of a combination of objects, or after each normal introduction of an object during the return of objects following tours in order to detect in particular if one or more objects were abnormally removed from the panel by the attendant. In this case, alarm means signal the operator responsible for the locations of abnormally removed objects.

• - la Fig. 1 est une vue de face d'un panneau pour mille clés selon l'invention ;
• - la Fig. 2 est une vue en coupe suivant une colonne du panneau montrant en détail des réceptacles ou modules amovibles de clé ayant des moyens de détection de présence ou d'absence de clé selon trois modes de réalisation selon l'invention ; et
• - la Fig. 3 est un bloc-diagramme schématique du système électronique propre à la gestion assistée du panneau.

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will appear more clearly on reading the following description of several embodiments according to the invention with reference to the corresponding appended drawings, in which:

• - Fig. 1 is a front view of a panel for a thousand keys according to the invention;
• - Fig. 2 is a sectional view along a column of the panel showing in detail receptacles or removable key modules having means for detecting the presence or absence of a key according to three embodiments according to the invention; and
• - Fig. 3 is a schematic block diagram of the electronic system specific to the assisted management of the panel.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the panel 1 is suitable for supporting MxN objects such as different keys 2 _1.1 to 2 _{M, N.} The integer MxN is assumed to be 1000 in the following.

The panel 1 essentially consists of a hollow parallelepiped base 10 the front face 11 of which is open and the bottom 12 of which is fixed against a wall or preferably in a locked safe. The base 10 presents MxN locations 3 _1.1 to 3 _{M, N} which are each assigned to a respective key 2 _1.1 to 2 _{M, N.} The locations are distributed according to a matrix which comprises, according to the example illustrated M = 20 horizontal rows or lines each having N = 50 locations cements aligned and included each in a vertical row or column.

Each location 3 _{m, n} , where m varies between 1 and M and n varies between 1 and N, assigned to the respective key 2 is under m, n in the form of a parallelepipedal cell in which is housed a removable module. As shown in Fig. 2, the bottom of a module 3 has two small tabs projecting towards the rear 30, in the form of flexible hooks opposite, which penetrate into a hole 13 in the bottom 12 of the panel in order to fix there by simple horizontal push the module 3 on the bottom 12. The modules can be separate individual elements, in particular in the case where the keys are all different but can constitute removable monobloc assemblies coming from molding each comprising for example one or more adjacent rows or columns of modules , in particular in the case where the keys for each monobloc assembly are identical.

For example, for a panel of a thousand keys, the width t, the height h and the depth p of a cell or module 3 are equal to 12mm, 27 mm and 46mm and the width L, the height H and the depth P of the base 10 are equal to 80cm, .60cm and 10 cm respectively.

The front face of each key module or receptacle 3 is substantially coplanar with that 11 of the base 10 and has a central opening 31 whose profile is identical to the general section of a predetermined part such as the bit 20 of the key respective 2. When the bit 20 of the key 2 is inserted into its module 3, the head 21 of the key 2 abuts against the front face of the module or else the end of the bit 20 of the key 2 abuts against the bottom of the module . The module is thus analogous to a dummy lock as shown in FIG. 2. In Fig. 1, there are shown some profiles of openings 31 and key bits 20, such as in the shape of a rectangle, I, Y, cross, etc.

The front face of each module 3 of a key 2 also includes a hole 32 in which is housed the end of a signaling means in the form of a light-emitting diode minescente 4 which lights up to invite the attendant to remove or introduce the key 2.

As shown in FIG. 2, each module 3 contains means 5 for detecting the key in order to signal the presence or absence of the respective key 2 of the module 3. Three embodiments of the key detection means are shown in FIG. 2.

The first - above in Fig. 2 - is constituted by an opening contact 50 polarized by a diode. 51 in series. The end of one, 52, of the blades of the contact 50 is bent along a large radius of curvature against which slides the bit 20 of the key 2 during its introduction through the opening 31 which pushes the bent blade 52 against the other blade 53 in order to close the contact. 50. Optionally, a spring such as another bent blade 54 is disposed symmetrically with the blade 52 and is applied against the other side of the bit 20 of the key in order to ensure guiding of the bit and consequently sufficient pressure of blade 52 against blade 53 of contact 50.

The second embodiment of key detection means - in the second module from the top in FIG. 2- is constituted by a photocoupler whose radiating source 55 and the photosensitive receiver 56 are arranged on either side of the bit 20 of the key 2. The radiating source 55 can be a small lamp, a light emitting diode or photoemissive. The photosensitive receiver 56 can be a photodiode or a phototransistor. Preferably, the radiating source 55 emits in the infrared in order to avoid any parasitic detection of visible light which can come in particular from the opening 31; in this case, the photosensitive receiver may be a charge coupled circuit element (CCD).

The radiating source 55 is always supplied. The photosensitive receiver 56 is obscured when the key is inserted, or is activated and therefore produces a current which signals the absence of the key in the module. According to another variant, the sources. individual radiant sources 55 can be replaced by a single radiating source which is common to all the cells and placed for example on the bottom 12 of the base 10. The luminance of the common radiating source is relatively high so that its radiation can pass through holes suitable in the cells and modules and excite the photosensitive receptors opposite the holes.

The third embodiment of key detection means - below in FIG. 2 - is an electromagnetic coupler. This coupler comprises a so-called transmitting coil 57 and a so-called receiving coil 58 which are arranged on either side of the bit 20 of the key. The axes of the coils are aligned perpendicular to the bit 20 of the key. The emitting coil 57 is continuously supplied. In the receiving coil 58, no current flows when the key 2 is present in the module 3, and a current is induced by the magnetic flux emitted by the other coil 57 when the key 2 is absent from the module 3.

According to a fourth embodiment, the key detection means can comprise a polarized capacitor, the armatures of which are arranged on either side of the bit 20 of the key, for example at the locations of the aforementioned coils 57 and 58. The variation of the capacitor capacity indicates the presence or absence of the key in the module.

The light-emitting diode 4 as well as the elements of the key detection means 5 of each module 3 are suitably fixed in the latter and have their terminals - four or six in number depending on the embodiment of the means 5 - in the form of pins 33 emerging from the bottom of the module and crossing the common bottom 12 of the cells of the panel 1 in order to carry out the wiring and the connection to the electronic management system of the panel.

The management system is shown diagrammatically in FIG. 3 and is preferably integrated into a console in front of the panel. The management of the keys of the panel is organized around a microprocessor 60 which is connected according to a conventional diagram to a random access memory of data 61 of type (P) RAM and to a read-only memory of instructions 62 of type (P) ROM to through a bidirectional data and instruction bus 63 and a bidirectional address bus 64. The buses 63 and 64 are also connected to a parallel interface 65 which comprises a digital parallel-parallel converter, to a serial interface 66 which comprises a parallel-to-serial digital converter, and to a plurality of pairs of parallel interfaces 7L and 7C, one of which is illustrated in FIG. 3.

The interface 65 serves a keyboard 67 with 16 keys as well as several signaling means 80, 81 and 82 which are arranged on the aforesaid console. The interface 66 is optionally provided for connecting the microprocessor 60 to other memories similar to memories 61 and 62 in order to adapt the capacity of all of the memories to the number of keys to be managed, and / or to a computer in view for example establishing statistical data on key management or having each round programmed by said computer.

Each parallel interface 7L, 7C comprises eight elementary terminals numbered from 0 to 7 from top to bottom or from left to right in FIG. 3. The interfaces 7I, and 7C of a pair address the rows and the columns of a sub-matrix of 8 × 8 = 64 crossing points 7 _0.0 to 7 _{I, J} which are respectively associated with any 64 modules. Each crossing point 7 _{i, j} , where i varies between 0 and 1 = 7 and j varies between 0 and J = 7, is served by the terminal i of the interface 7L or row of rank i of the 8x8 sub-matrix and by the terminal j of the interface 7C or column of row j of the sub-matrix 8x8. At each crossing point 7 _{i, j} , the light-emitting diode 4 and the element 50-51, 56 or 58 of the key detection means 5 of the respective module are mounted head to tail between the respective terminals i and j.

For example, as illustrated in detail in Fig. 3 at the crossing point 7 _{I, J} , the diode 4 is directly polarized from terminal J to terminal I while contact 50-51 - or phototransistor 56 or take-up coil 58 - is biased directly from terminal I to terminal J. Thus, the light-emitting diode 4 in the module associated with the point 7 _{I, J} is the only one excited to signal that the respective key must be removed or inserted when the terminal J is at the high level "1" and the other terminals of the interface of the columns 7C are at the low level "0" and when terminal I is at low level "0" and the other terminals of the interface of lines 7L are at level "1"; none of the polarized contacts 50 is excited whether the respective key is absent or present in the module. Conversely, when the interface of the lines 7L applies the high level "1" to terminal I and the low level "0" to its other terminals, the contact 50 at the crossing point 7 _{I, J} is conducting when the key is present in the module and connects the blades 52 and 53 which puts terminal J in state "0", which state will be read to verify that the key is present in the module; in the latter case, all the light-emitting diodes 4 are at rest and the contacts 50 at the other connection points do not induce any current even in the presence of their respective keys. From the above, it appears that the light-emitting diodes 4 of the matrix 8 × 8 can be excited individually and that the states of the contacts 50 or more generally of the key detection means 5 of the matrix can be read individually. The individual excitations and readings are sent by the microprocessor 60 via the bus 64 and the read state of a contact 50 is retransmitted to the microprocessor 60 via the bus 63.

-For the embodiment of panel 1 in Fig.1, the system includes 16 pairs of interfaces 7L, 7C to manage 16x64 = 1024 crossing points distributed in 16 8x8 sub-matrices; twenty-four crossing points remain unused for the panel with a thousand modules. Each time a crossing point is selected, the microprocessor 60 delivers the address of this point as well as the addresses of the two respective interfaces 7L and 7C and a particular bit indicating that the diode 4 or the means 5 at the crossing point must be energized in order to apply the appropriate polarization.

The distribution of the crossing points by 8x8 sub-matrices makes it possible to limit the number of leads to the panel to 16x16 = 256 instead of 2x1024 in the case of an embodiment where the addressing of the crossing points is carried out individually and directly.

We will now describe the use of the management system of a panel according to the invention for taking predetermined combinations of keys which are intended for agents responsible for opening the access compartments of a locked box in vending machines for products or services. Each attendant constitutes, from the keys in the panel, a bunch of keys in a predetermined order, the successive openings of the box housings being carried out during their tour in this order or in reverse order.

The day preceding that of the box lifting rounds, the operator lists, using a conventional printer, the numbers of the dispensing devices to be collected in the same round and the order in which they are recorded according to the following table 1:

The number of the dispensing device and of the respective key of its box housing is given on the front face of the respective module 3 of the panel 1, as shown in FIG. 1. This number can. be engraved in an opaque plate placed in front of the respective light-emitting diode 4, which makes it easier to read the number by the tour attendant and the operator assigned to the desk.

Then the operator composes on the keyboard 67 according to an appropriate code the data of the preceding table I, so that these are stored in the memory 61. For a tour, when the microprocessor will successively read the key numbers according to the predetermined order, it will deliver the addresses of the interfaces 7L and 7C and the number of the respective crossing point of the sub-matrix corresponding to each key number.

On the day of the tours, the operator checks the presence of the keys in the panel by means of a program previously stored in memory 62 and called from the keyboard 67.

• - adressage par le microprocesseur de la paire 7L, 7C via le bus 64 ;
• - mise aux états 10000000 des bornes 0 à I de l'interface 7L ;
• - lecture des états des bornes 0 à J de l'interface 7C qui doivent être tous égaux à "0" si les clés correspondant à la première ligne de points de croisement 7_0,0 à 7_0,7 sont dans leurs modules respectifs ;
• - mise aux états 01000000 des bornes 0 à I de l'interface 7L ;
• - lecture des états des bornes 0 à J de l'interface 7C; et
• - réitération des deux dernières étapes pour chacune des lignes suivantes de la sous-matrice .

This so-called key presence test program lasts around 500ms. It is composed of a subroutine to test the presence of the keys in the modules corresponding to an 8x8 sub-matrix and a pair of interfaces 7L, 7C, the subroutine being repeated as many times as there are 8x8 sub-matrices. The subroutine includes the following steps for each set of an 8x8 sub-matrix and a pair of interfaces 7L, 7C:

• - addressing by the microprocessor of the pair 7L, 7C via the bus 64;
• - setting 10,000,000 of terminals 0 to I of the 7L interface;
• - reading of the states of the terminals 0 to J of the interface 7C which must all be equal to "0" if the keys corresponding to the first line of crossing points 7 _0.0 to 7 _0.7 are in their respective modules;
• - setting 01000000 of terminals 0 to I of the inter face 7L;
• - reading of the states of terminals 0 to J of the interface 7C; and
• - reiteration of the last two steps for each of the following lines of the sub-matrix.

When the interface 7C detects a terminal at an abnormal state "1", which indicates that the key is absent, the interface 7C delivers a coded word to the microprocessor 60. The latter verifies that this key should be absent, which is the case for the 24 crossing points not used for a panel with a thousand keys or for a crossing point whose key was removed normally during the formation of a bunch of keys of a tour as will be seen in the following. If the key had to be present, the microprocessor 60 delivers an alarm signal to the interface 65 which is converted, for example, into an audible alarm by a loudspeaker 80 placed on the console, and / or into a signal d reverse polarity at the two interfaces 7L and 7C so that the light-emitting diode 4 of the missing key module is activated.

• - adressage par le microprocesseur des deux interfaces respectives 7L et 7C ;
• - mise à l'état "1" de la borne de l'interface 7C desservant le point de croisement respectif et mise à l'état "0" des autres bornes de l'interface 7C ;
• - mise à 1' état "^p" de la borne de l'interface 7L desservant le point de croisement respectif et mise à l'état "1" des autres bornes de l'interface 7L;
• - la diode électroluminescente respective 4 est excitée;
• - le préposé à la tournée doit retirer la clé respective pendant une durée prédéterminée de l'ordre de 500 ms par exemple;
• - puis la diode précédente 4 s'éteint par inversion de polarité suite au retrait de la clé respective et le programme de test de présence des clés susmentionné est déclenché afin de vérifier que le préposé n'a pas retiré d'autres clés que celles déjà retirées pour sa tournée;
  ceci est effectué par le microprocesseur 60 qui compare un bit d'état - présence ou absence de clé - dans la mémoire 61 avec le bit lu dans l'interface de colonnes respectif 7C pour chaque emplacement;
• - après le déroulement du programme de test, la diode électroluminescente 4 correspondant à la clé respective suivante à retirer est automatiquement adressée et excitée suivant la même procédure;
• - lorsque toutes les clés de la première tournée sont retirées, le microprocesseur 60 le signale à l'opérateur par l'illumination d'un voyant 81 sur le pupitre, via l'interface 65. Puis les clés des autres tournées pour d'autres préposés sont retirées comme précédemment.

On the day of the tours, the operator dials on number 67 the number 1 of the first tour and an appropriate operation code. The microprocessor 60 reads the numbers of the keys of the first round in the memory 61 and successively delivers the addresses of the interfaces 7C and 7L and of the respective crossing points. For each key to be removed, the program proceeds as follows:

• - addressing by the microprocessor of the two respective interfaces 7L and 7C;
• - setting to the state "1" of the terminal of the interface 7C serving the respective crossing point and setting to the state "0" of the other terminals of the interface 7C;
• - setting to the " ^p " state of the terminal of the 7L interface serving the respective crossing point and setting to the "1" state other terminals of the 7L interface;
• - the respective light emitting diode 4 is energized;
• - the tour operator must remove the respective key for a predetermined period of the order of 500 ms for example;
• - then the previous diode 4 goes out by reversing the polarity following the withdrawal of the respective key and the aforementioned key presence test program is triggered in order to verify that the attendant has not removed other keys than those already withdrawn for his tour;
  this is done by the microprocessor 60 which compares a status bit - presence or absence of key - in the memory 61 with the bit read in the respective column interface 7C for each location;
• - after the running of the test program, the light-emitting diode 4 corresponding to the following respective key to be removed is automatically addressed and excited according to the same procedure;
• - when all the keys of the first round are removed, the microprocessor 60 signals this to the operator by the illumination of a light 81 on the console, via the interface 65. Then the keys of the other rounds for others attendants are removed as before.

Upon return of the agents having raised the boxes of the vending machines, each agent stores in the panel the keys to his round - in the same order or the reverse order chosen by the operator - following a program similar to that of withdrawal previously described .

In the case where several key panels are necessary, the microprocessor 60 assigns an address to each panel and each time a panel is used for the withdrawal or the introduction of one of its keys, a respective indicator light 82 is lit on the desk to orient the o operator to the sign in question.

Finally, it will be noted that each of the essential constituent means of the management system or of the panel taken separately falls within the scope of the invention; this is particularly the case for the actual panel 1, the object module or receptacle 3, or one of the means 5 for detecting the presence or absence of an object.

Claims (15)

1 - Management system for a panel of objects (1) on which each object (2) has a respective location (3) designated by an address and associated with a signaling means (4), the system comprising means (61 ) for storing predetermined combinations (tours) of location addresses, means (60, 67) for successively reading the stored combinations, means (60, 7L, 7C) for successively energizing the signaling means (4) to locations designated by the addresses read from the same combination in order to remove or introduce the objects (2) to said locations (3), characterized in that it comprises means for detecting objects (5, 7C, 60) for check the withdrawal or introduction of the objects (2) removed or introduced, and that the signaling means (4) at a location designated by an address read from a combination is energized and the signaling means (4) to the location designated by the previous address read from said combination is de-energized in response to the detection of the withdrawal or introduction of the object (2) to said location (3) designated by said previous address. 2 - System according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises means (60,61) for checking the normal presence or absence of all the objects in the panel (1) after the withdrawal or introduction of 'an object (2) for which its signaling means (4) has been excited. 3 - System according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises alarm means (60, 80, 4) for signaling the abnormal withdrawal or introduction of an object (2) other than those normally removed or introduced to locations whose addresses have been read. 4 - System according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it comprises means (60, 67, 81) for individually triggering the reading of each combination of addresses stored for the successive withdrawals or introductions of the objects (2) at the locations (3) designated by the addresses of the combination. 5 - System according to one of claims 1 _. to 4, characterized in that each signaling means (4) illuminates the address (number) designating the location (3) of the respective object (2). 6 - System according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the location (3) of an object (2) in the panel (1) is constituted by up receptacle preferably removable whose opening ( 31) has a profile substantially identical to a predetermined part (20) of the object (2). 7 - System according to claim 6, characterized in that the receptacle (3) of an object (2) contains the signaling means (4) and the detection means (5) of said object. 8 - System according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the object detection means comprises a polarized contact (50, 51) against a blade (52) which slides the predetermined part (20) of said object (2 ) during its introduction through the opening (31) of the receptacle (3) in order to close the container (5). 9 - System according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the object detection means comprises a radiating source (55) and a photosensitive receiver (56) on either side of the predetermined part (20) of the object (2) in the receptacle (3). 10 - System according to claim 9, characterized in that the radiating source (55) emits in the infrared. 11 - System according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the radiating sources (55) of the object detection means are replaced by a single radiating source. 12 - System according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the object detection means comprises a transmitting coil (57) and a receiving coil (58) on either side of the predetermined part (20) of the object (2) in the receptacle (3). 13 - System according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the detection means (5) of an object (2) comprises a polarized capacitor whose armatures are on either side of the predetermined part (20) of the object (2) in the receptacle (3). 14 - System according to one of claims 8 to 13, characterized in that the signaling means (4) and the element of the detection means (5) such as the polarized contact (50, 51), or the receiver photosensitive (56), or the receiving coil (58), or the polarized capacitor, are parallel head-to-tail. 15 - System according to claim 14, characterized in that the assemblies each composed of a signaling means and a detection means (5) head to tail constitute the crossing points (7 _{i, j} ) of several sub - matrices individually addressable according to a polarity determined by the excitation means (60, 7C, 7L) of the signaling means (4) and according to a reverse polarity by means of verification of removal or introduction of the objects (7C, 60 ).

Images