JP2002279473A - Coin-sorting machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize a simple and compact coin sorting machines capable of separating plural pieces of coins charged in batch one by one, discriminating the kind of money of each coin, and efficiently executing a series of processings for sorting the coins by the money kinds. SOLUTION: This coin sorting machine is provided with a sprocket-shaped rotor 21 having plural coin separating and storing parts 20 on its outer peripheral part; a stator 22 storing the rotor 21, and inclining and holding the same; a sensor 30 for discriminating the money kind, plural coin passing holes 24a-24i mounted on the back of the rotor 21 for sorting the coins, after the discrimination of the kind of money, corresponding to the kind of money, plural shutters 25a-25h for independently openably closing the coin passage holes 24a-24i; plural shutter driving devices for independently opening and closing the shutters 25a-25h; and a control device for discriminating the kind of money of each coin, on the basis of the output from the sensor 30 for discriminating the kind of money, and selectively operating the shutter driving device, on the basis of a result of the discrimination.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a coin sorting apparatus for sorting coins by denomination.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as this kind of coin sorting apparatus, one described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-229513 is known. As shown in FIG. 10, the coin sorting device described in this publication has a plurality of coin separation and accommodating portions 201 a to 201 g for picking up a plurality of coins that have been put in one by one, and the direction of arrow A in the drawing. -Rotating sprocket rotor 20
2 and the coin 202 by rotating the rotor 202.
3 is provided at a specific position where the coin 3 passes, and determines whether the coin 203 is a genuine coin or a fake coin.
And a stator 209 holding the rotor 202 at an angle.
A coin passing hole 205 provided at a position of the stator 209 where the coin 203 passes, and for allowing the coin 203 to pass when the discriminating means 204 determines that the coin 203 is genuine;
The discriminating means 204 is provided at a position where the coin 203 passes.
A fake coin passing hole 206 for passing the coin 203 when discriminated as a fake coin, a shutter 207 for closing the genuine coin passing hole 205 when the discrimination means 204 discriminates the fake coin, And a driving means 208 for driving the shutter 207 to open and close.

[0003] In the coin sorting apparatus described in this publication,
When the discriminating means 204 determines that the coin is a genuine coin,
When the genuine coin passing hole 205 is opened and it is determined that the coin is a fake coin, the genuine or fake coin passes through the genuine coin passing hole 205 or the fake coin passing hole 206 because the fake coin passing hole 206 is opened. Will be. In this way, by selectively opening either the coin passing hole 205 or the fake coin passing hole 206,
While the coins 203 are being conveyed by the rotor 202, true coins and false coins are sorted.

[0004]

However, the coin sorting apparatus described in the above publication is for sorting genuine coins and counterfeit coins, and does not have a function of sorting coins by denomination. Even if this is diverted to an apparatus for sorting denominations, only two coins can be sorted because there are only two coin passing holes. Therefore, the present invention provides a method for collecting a plurality of
A sprocket-shaped rotor having a plurality of coin separation accommodating portions on the outer periphery for separating and transporting the coins one by one is provided. While the rotor rotates, the inserted coins are separated one by one, and each coin is separated. It is an object of the present invention to realize a simple and compact configuration of a coin sorting apparatus capable of efficiently performing a series of processes for discriminating the denomination and sorting the denominations. Furthermore,
An object of the present invention is to realize a highly versatile coin sorter or the like that can easily change settings for currencies of various countries without changing the hardware configuration, with a simple and compact configuration.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a coin sorting apparatus according to the present invention comprises a plurality of coin separating and accommodating units for separating and transporting a plurality of coins which are collectively inserted one by one. A sprocket-shaped rotor provided on an outer peripheral portion, a stator for accommodating the rotor and holding the rotor at an angle, and a coin passing area accompanying rotation of the rotor to determine a denomination of each coin conveyed by the rotor. A denomination discriminating sensor provided to face the coin, and the coins denominated by the denomination discriminating sensor are sorted into denominations. A plurality of coin passage holes provided behind the plurality of coin passage holes, a plurality of shutters for individually closing and opening the plurality of coin passage holes, and a plurality of shutters for separately opening and closing the plurality of shutters, respectively. A shutter driving device; and a control device that discriminates a denomination of each coin based on an output from the denomination discriminating sensor, and selectively operates the plurality of shutter driving devices according to the discrimination result. It is characterized by the following.

In the coin sorter of the present invention, the shutter is hinged to the stator so as to be rotatable rearward, and the shutter driving device is an electromagnetic solenoid type having a movable iron core connected to the shutter. It is desirable to have a linear actuator. Further, it is preferable that a foreign matter passage hole for discharging foreign matter is formed in a lower portion of the stator. The foreign matter passage hole is desirably a slit having a width (gap) smaller than the thickness of the thinnest coin among coins to be sorted. In addition, it is preferable that the denomination discriminating sensor is a sensor whose output changes according to the diameter of each discrimination target. Also,
When a photo sensor is used as the denomination discriminating sensor, the photo sensor includes a light receiving unit extending along a radial direction of the rotor, and a light emitting unit that emits light toward the light receiving unit. It is desirable to be an interrupt type photo sensor which is arranged so as to face each other via a coin transport area. Then, the denomination discriminating sensor is located at a position where the light receiving portion is partially shielded by coins conveyed by the rotor, that is, behind the rotor, the shade of the coin due to light from the light emitting portion is shaded. It is desirable to be arranged at a position partially covering the light receiving unit.

[0007] In the stator, the detection area of the denomination sensor, that is, the limit position at which all the coins can move radially outward of the rotor when passing through the front of the light receiving portion is determined by the denomination. It is preferable that a guide wall is formed by the rotor so as to be in sliding contact with the outer peripheral portion of the coin being conveyed so as to be constant. The guide wall is
Preferably, the rotor is a circular or arc-shaped wall formed so as to surround the rotor. Further, which denomination is assigned to which coin passing hole among the plurality of coin passing holes can be arbitrarily changed by changing a program or data written in a memory in the control device. Is desirable. Preferably, the correspondence between the output from the denomination sensor and the denomination can be arbitrarily changed by changing a program or data written in a memory in the control device. Further, all or a part of the plurality of coin passing holes,
An upper part of the stator, for example, provided at a position higher than the rotation center of the stator, and the denomination sensor is provided at a position lower than the coin passing hole located at the most upstream position in the coin conveying direction by the rotor. desirable.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view showing an example of an embodiment of a coin sorting apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 (a) is a front view of the coin sorting apparatus, and FIG. 2 (b) is an operation / display panel of the coin sorting apparatus. It is a front view. As shown in the figure, the coin sorting apparatus 100 has a coin insertion slot 1 in the upper front part of the apparatus main body 101, an operation / display panel 2 in the center of the front part, and a coin stock part 3 in the lower part.

The coin slot 1 is provided with a lid 4 which rotates back and forth. When the lid 4 is opened, the coin slot 1 is opened, and a plurality of coins are inserted into the apparatus main body 101 from the coin slot 1. It can be put in at the same time. The operation / display panel 2 includes various controls such as an ON / OFF (STOP) button 12a, a denomination button 12b, a circle button 12c, a number button 12d, an enter button 12e, a clear button 12f, a counting result and various messages. Are displayed, and a denomination display unit 14b indicating a denomination for a coefficient is provided. The coin stock unit 3 includes a plurality of coin stockers 5-1 for stocking coins by denomination.
0s are stored in a row. In addition, a handle 16 for carrying is provided at the upper end of the apparatus main body 1. The coin sorting apparatus 100 uses a commercial (AC) power supply or a secondary battery built in the apparatus main body 101 as a power supply. The power can be turned on and off by pressing the ON / OFF button 12a on the operation / display panel 2. Then, when a coin is inserted into the apparatus main body 101 from the coin insertion slot 1 in the power-on state, the apparatus main body 101 is operated by an automatic start function described later.
The internal coin sorting mechanism 101A automatically operates to sort coins by denomination. The sorted coins are stored in coin stockers 5 to 10 for each denomination. At this time, the result display unit 14a displays the accumulated amount and total amount of the selected coins for each denomination, the total amount of all the inserted coins, and the like. The denomination can be selected by pressing the denomination button 12b, and a numerical value indicating the selected denomination is displayed on the denomination display section 14b.
Will be displayed. The circle button 12c and the number button 12d
A button for switching between a display of the amount of money and a display of the number of copies. When the circle button 12c is pressed, a numerical value representing the amount is displayed on the result display section 14a, and the indicator 13a indicating that the amount is displayed is lit. Number button 12
When d is pressed, a numerical value representing the number is displayed on the result display section 14a, and the indicator 13b indicating the number display is lit. The enter key 12e is a button for instructing confirmation of the set contents when changing the settings of the coin sorting apparatus 100. The clear button 12f is a button for clearing (returning to zero) the calculation result and the contents during the setting operation.

Next, the internal configuration of the coin sorting apparatus 100 will be described. 3 is a sectional view showing the internal structure of the coin sorting device 100, FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway front view showing the structure of the coin sorting mechanism 101A of the coin sorting device 100, and FIG. 5 is a main part (rotor portion) of the coin sorting mechanism 101A. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of the coin sorting apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, a coin sorting mechanism 110 (101A) is provided in an apparatus main body 101 of the coin sorting apparatus 100,
A coin guiding path 111 for guiding coins sorted by the coin sorting mechanism 110 to separate coin stockers 5 to 10 for each denomination.
Are provided. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the coin sorting mechanism 110 includes a plurality of coin separating and accommodating units for separating and transporting a plurality of coins collectively inserted into the apparatus main body 101 from the coin insertion slot 1 one by one. Sprocket-shaped rotor 21 having a portion (notch portion) 20 on the outer periphery, a rotor rotation drive mechanism 49 for rotating the rotor 21, and a stator (fixed plate) that accommodates the rotor 21 on the front surface and holds the rotor 21 at an angle. 22, a denomination discriminating sensor 30 provided to face a coin passing area accompanying rotation of the rotor 21 to discriminate a denomination of each coin conveyed by the rotor 21, and a denomination discriminating sensor 30 In order to sort coins after denomination discrimination according to denominations, a plurality of coin passage holes 24a to 24i formed in the stator 22 facing the coin passage area accompanying the rotation of the rotor 21, and the plurality of coin passages. Hole 24a~2
4i, a coin passing hole (a hole that is always open) located at the most downstream position in the coin conveying direction (the direction indicated by the arrow A in the figure) by the rotor 21 with the lowest point in the rotation area of the rotor 21 as a starting point. ) A plurality of coin passage holes 24a to 2 except 24i
A plurality of shutters (trapezoidal plate pieces) 25a to 25h for closing and opening each of the shutters 4h separately, and a plurality of shutters 25a to 25h are provided for each of the shutters 25a to 25h for individually opening and closing these shutters 25a to 25h. 3, only a plurality of shutter driving devices 26a to 26h (only 26d are shown in FIG. 3. The structure of 26a to 26c, 26e to 26h, and the structure is also 26d.
Is the same as ) And a denomination of each coin based on the output from the denomination determination sensor 23, and a control circuit board (control device) for selectively operating the plurality of shutter driving devices 26a to 26h according to the determination result. ) 27.

The stator 22 is fixed to a housing of the apparatus main body 101. The rotor 21 is fixed to a rotor rotation shaft 29 rotatably supported at the center of the stator 22 via a bearing 28, and is rotated by the rotation of the rotor rotation shaft 29 by a rotor rotation driving mechanism 49. I do. A plurality of rotor receiving rollers 41 for rotating the rotor 21 smoothly are arranged on the stator 22. Further, a cover 39 that covers substantially the upper half of the rotor 21 (the portion where the shutters 25a to 25h are disposed) is attached to the stator 22. The rotor rotation drive mechanism 49 includes a motor 31 fixed to the stator 22, and gears 33 and 34 that transmit a rotation force output to the drive shaft 32 of the motor 31 to the rotor rotation shaft 29. Rotor 2
The size and shape of one coin separating / storing portion 20 are set so that a coin having a maximum diameter can be accommodated and two coins having a minimum diameter cannot be accommodated. The thickness of the rotor 21 and the distance between the rotor 21 and the stator 22 are determined by the distance between the front surface of the rotor 21 and the front surface of the stator 22, that is, the height of the rotor 21 measured vertically from the front surface of the stator 22. It is set to be equivalent to the thickness of the thinnest coin.
A plurality of coin passing holes 24a-2 formed in the stator 22
Among the coins 4i, except for the coin passage hole 24i located at the most downstream position and the coin passage hole 24h adjacent thereto, the coin passage hole 24i is provided at a position higher than the rotation center of the stator 22. The sizes and shapes of the plurality of coin passing holes 24a to 24i are all the same, and are set so that a coin having the maximum diameter can pass. A double feed prevention mechanism 50 is provided below the stator 22 at a position between the lowest point of the rotation area of the rotor 21 and the denomination sensor 30. Double feed prevention mechanism 50
Is provided to prevent the second coin from being conveyed in a state where it is overlapped or obliquely hung on the coin separating / accommodating portion 20 of the rotor 21. Held remover (rotating arm) 5
1 and a coil spring (biasing means) 52 that constantly biases the remover 51 toward the rotor 21 (the direction indicated by the arrow B in FIG. 4). If two coins are conveyed in a stacked state or a second coin obliquely hung, the second coin (upper coin) is prevented from progressing by contacting the remover 51. It is. This prevents the second coin from being conveyed in a state where the second coin is overlapped or obliquely hung on the coin separation accommodating portion 20 of the rotor 21, and one coin is surely inserted into each coin segregating and accommodating portion 20. It can be stored and transported. The distance between the remover 51 and the stator 22 is set to be less than twice the thickness of the thinnest coin. Since the height of the rotor 21 is set to be equal to the thickness of the thinnest coin, especially in the case of a thick coin, the remover 51 is pushed away against the urging force of the spring 52. Conveyed by the rotor 21.

The shutters 25a to 25h have hinged mechanisms 52a to 53h, each having an outer end on the back side of the stator 22.
(Only 52d is shown in FIG. 3. 42a-52c, 52
The structures of e to 52h are the same as those of 52d. ), It is supported rotatably backward with respect to the stator 22. The shapes and dimensions of the shutters 25a to 25h are set so that the coin passing holes 24a to 24h can be completely closed. Shutter driving devices 26a-
26h has an electromagnetic solenoid type linear actuator 5
3a to 53h (only 53d is shown in FIG. 3.
53c, 53e to 53h and the structure are the same as 53d. ) Is used. The movable iron cores 55 of the electromagnetic solenoid type linear actuators 53a to 53h are connected to the shutters 25a to 25h in the vicinity of hinge connection portions with the stator 22 respectively. Each movable core 55 is extended by a coil spring (not shown) in the extending direction, that is, the shutters 25a to 25a.
It is always urged in the direction to close 25h (the direction indicated by arrow C in FIG. 3). When the length of the electromagnetic solenoid type linear actuators 54a to 54h is reduced, the shutter 25a
25h are rotated in the opening direction (the direction indicated by arrow D in FIG. 3) against the urging force of the coil spring, and the coin passing holes 24a to 24h are opened.

The denomination sensor 30 is provided at a position lower than the coin passage hole 24a located at the most upstream position. The denomination discriminating sensor 30 includes a light receiving device 35 extending in a radial direction of the rotor 21 and a light emitting device 36 for irradiating light toward the light receiving device 35 to be opposed to each other via a coin transport area by the rotor 21. It is an interrupt type photo sensor. The light receiving device 35 includes the rotor 2
An Si photodiode (PD) having a linear (elongated strip-shaped) light-receiving surface extending in the radial direction is used. A light emitting diode (LED) is used for the light emitting device 36. The light receiving device 35 is arranged in a slit 37 formed in the stator 22, and is held by a bracket 38 fixed to the back surface of the stator 22. The light emitting device 36 is provided fixed to the cover 39. The light receiving device 35 is installed at a position where the value of the output current changes according to the diameter of a coin passing in front of the light receiving unit. That is, the light receiving unit is arranged at a position where the coins conveyed by the rotor 21 partially shield the light receiving unit. When coins having a through hole such as a 5-yen coin and a 50-yen coin are included in the sorting target, the coins are arranged at positions where the light receiving section does not face the through-holes of these coins.

The guide wall 40 guides the coins so that the outer peripheral portions of all the coins conveyed by the rotor 21 draw the same arc-shaped trajectory. That is, centrifugal force acts on the coin being transported by the rotor 21, but the coin is
It is conveyed while sliding on. As a result, the detection area of the denomination sensor 30, that is, the outward movable limit position of all coins when passing in front of the light receiving unit of the light receiving device 35 is constant regardless of the denomination. Thereby, based on the value of the output current of the light receiving device 35, the diameter of the coin,
As a result, the denomination of the coin can be determined. A foreign matter passage hole 60 for discharging foreign matter is formed in the stator 22 on the guide wall 4.
0 is formed at the lower end. The foreign matter passage hole 60 is a slit (a long hole) having a width (gap) smaller than the thickness of the thinnest coin among coins to be sorted and extending in the circumferential direction of the guide wall 40. The foreign matter passage hole 60 is provided in the apparatus main body 1.
No. 01 communicates with a foreign matter discharge port 61 opened on the front face of the housing, and foreign matter having a thickness of 1 mm or less is discharged from the housing to the outside of the apparatus.

FIG. 6 shows a control circuit board (control device) 27.
CPU 71, memory 72 and diameter discriminating circuit 7 shown therein
3 is installed. The memory 72 is connected to the memory 72 via a system bus. The memory 72 has EE
A coin sorting device 1 which is a nonvolatile memory such as a PROM
00 is stored and stored. The CPU 71 controls the coin sorting device 1 according to programs and data stored in the memory 72.
00 are controlled. The CPU 71 has an I / O
Operation / display panel 2 via port, starting microswitch 73, diameter discriminating circuit 74, rotor monitoring sensor 7
5 and the current control circuit 76 are connected. The current control circuit 76 supplies a DC current from the secondary battery 78 incorporated in the apparatus main body 101 to each power supply target in the coin sorting apparatus 100 while controlling the DC current to a specified value. When the AC adapter 79 is used, a DC current supplied from a commercial power supply through the AC adapter 79 is supplied to each power supply target. The starting microswitch 73 is connected to the rotor 2
1 is fixed to the stator 22 at the lowest point of the rotation area (see FIG. 4). When a coin is inserted into the apparatus main body 1, the movable piece 77 is pushed down by the weight of the coin, and the switch is turned on. Is turned on. When this switch is turned on, the CPU 71 activates the coin sorting mechanism 110 to start the denomination determination processing (automatic start function). Also, the CPU 71 turns off the activation micro switch 73.
If the condition continues for more than a predetermined time, the coin sorting mechanism 1
Stop 10

The diameter discriminating circuit 74 detects the value of the output current of the light receiving device 35 while causing the light emitting device 36 of the denomination detecting sensor 30 to emit light under the control of the CPU 71, and determines the diameter of the discrimination target from the value. Determine. Then, the result of the determination is sent to the CPU 71. The rotor monitoring sensor 75 is
The reflection type photosensor is fixed to a specific position (see FIG. 3) of the stator 22 so as to face the back surface of the rotor 21.
A plurality of marks (black marks, holes, etc.) 80 (see FIG. 5) are provided at equal intervals along the rotation direction in the rotor 21 in the detection region of the rotor monitoring sensor 75. The rotor monitoring sensor 75 outputs a mark detection signal each time the mark 80 passes through the detection area. C
The PU 71 detects, based on the mark detection signal from the rotor monitoring sensor 75, the rotational position of the rotor 21, that is, which coin separating and accommodating portion 20 of the rotor 21 has reached the position of the coin passing holes 24 a to 24 h. . And C
The PU 71 discriminates the denomination of the coin based on the result of the diameter discrimination by the diameter discriminating circuit 74, and the coin separating and accommodating portion 20 accommodating the discriminated coin is a coin passing hole 24a assigned to the denomination. At the timing of reaching the position of the shutters 25a to 24h, the shutter driving devices 26a to 26h connected to the shutters 25a to 25h closing the coin passing holes 24a to 24h are selectively operated to operate the shutters 25a to 26h.
Open 25h selectively.

The method of sorting coins in the coin sorting apparatus 100 of this embodiment will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing the relationship between the rotor 21 and the stator 22 linearly. As described above, the coins are sequentially conveyed to the position of the denomination discriminating sensor 30 as the rotor 21 rotates in a state where the coins are separated and stored one by one in the coin separation and storage section 20 of the rotor 21. And
Diameter discriminating circuit 7 based on the output of denomination discriminating sensor 30
4, the diameter of each coin is determined, and the denomination is determined by the CPU 71 based on the diameter determination result. CPU7
Reference numeral 1 denotes a denomination discrimination and actuators 53a to 53a according to programs and data written in a memory 72.
53h operation control is performed.

FIG. 8 shows an example of assigning denominations to the coin passing holes 24a to 24h. Ports No. 1 to No. 8 in the drawing are coin passing holes 24a to 24h and actuators 53a to 53a.
3h. Here, the six types of coins commonly used in Japan, namely 1 yen, 5 yen, 10 yen
Since the case where the yen, 50 yen, 100 yen, and 500 yen are sorted by denomination is shown, 6 yen counting from the coin transport direction upstream side is shown.
The first two ports are used, and the remaining two ports are set to unused.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation timing of the actuators 53a to 53h when the denominations are assigned to the coin passing holes 24a to 24h as shown in FIG. Actuators No. 1 to 8 in the figure correspond to actuators 53a to 53h, respectively. OP
The EN count corresponds to the amount of movement of the coin separation and storage unit 20 of the rotor 21 starting from the position of the denomination sensor 30. The movement amount for one count here is set to the distance between the center points of the adjacent coin passing holes 24a to 24h. The denomination data 1 to 6 correspond to the ports Nos. 1 to 6, and this example shows a case where the arrangement of coins separated and conveyed by the rotor 21 is as shown in FIG. That is, the state of FIG. 7 shows the state at the start time in FIG. In this state, every time the rotor 21 rotates by one count, a 100-yen coin, a 50-yen coin, a 10-yen coin, a 10-yen coin, a 5-yen coin,... A determination is made. At this time, the arrangement of the denomination discrimination data is 5, 4, 3, 3, 2,.... CPU 71
Is 1 if the denomination is 1 yen as a result of the denomination
Count for 5 yen, 2 count for 10 yen, 3 count for 10 yen, 4 count for 50 yen, 100
When the rotor 21 rotates, the actuators 53a to 53f of the corresponding actuators No. 1 to 6 correspond to 5 counts for a circle and 6 counts for a 500 yen.
Is selectively activated. In the case of FIG.
At the time of rotation by the count, the actuators 53c to 53e of No3 to No5 are simultaneously operated. As a result, the three shutters 25c to 25e are simultaneously opened, and the first three coins are sorted into the coin passing holes 24c to 24e of 10 yen, 50 yen, and 100 yen, respectively, and dropped by coin type. When the CPU 71 further rotates the rotor 21 by one count, the No. 2 and No. 3 actuators 53b,
53c are simultaneously activated. As a result, the three shutters 25c to 25e are simultaneously opened, and the next two coins are sorted into the coin passing holes 24b and 24c of 10 yen and 50 yen, respectively, and dropped by coin type. The same applies to the following. Coins that are not assigned to any of the coin passing holes 24a to 24f to which the denominations are assigned pass through the coin opening holes 24i that are always open, and are specific coins different from coins sorted by denomination. It is stored in a stocker.

As described above, according to the coin sorting apparatus 100 of this embodiment, while the rotor 21 rotates, the inserted coins are separated one by one, and the denomination of each coin is determined. A coin sorting device capable of efficiently performing a series of processes for sorting by denomination can be realized with a simple and compact configuration. In the above configuration example, nine coins are provided including the coin opening hole which is always open.
Denomination of species is possible. Further, by changing the program or data written in the memory 72, the correspondence between the output from the denomination sensor 30 and the denomination can be arbitrarily changed. It is possible to realize a highly versatile coin sorting device that can easily change settings for currencies of various countries with a simple and compact configuration. Further, it is possible to arbitrarily change which denomination is assigned to which coin passing hole among the eight coin passing holes 24a to 24h by changing a program or data written in the memory 72. The setting can be freely changed according to the use environment without changing the hardware configuration so as to make it easier to use. For example, in an environment in which it is sufficient to be able to sort and count two denominations of 100 yen coins and 500 yen coins, one of any two of the eight coin passage holes 24a to 24h is allocated to 100 yen, and the other is allocated to 100 yen. May be allocated to 500 yen.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where nine coin passing holes are provided, including the case where coin passing holes are always open, has been described as an example. However, the number of coin passing holes is limited to this. is not. If the number of coin passing holes is 10 or more, more kinds of denominations can be selected. In the above example, a Si photodiode is used as the light receiving device 35 of the denomination discriminating sensor 30, but a photo array sensor, a line CCD sensor, or an image sensor may be used instead. Further, an optical sensor may be used in place of a mechanical switch such as a micro switch to detect that a coin has been inserted into the apparatus main body 1.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, a sprocket-shaped sprocket having a plurality of coin separating and accommodating portions on its outer periphery for separating and transporting a plurality of coins put together at a time one by one. With a rotor, while this rotor rotates,
It is possible to realize a simple and compact configuration of a coin sorting device that can separate the inserted coins one by one, determine the denomination of each coin, and efficiently perform a series of processes for sorting by coin type. it can. Further, a highly versatile coin sorting apparatus that can easily change settings for currencies of various countries without changing the hardware configuration can be realized with a simple and compact configuration.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view showing an example of an embodiment of a coin sorting device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a front view of a coin sorting device, and FIG. 2B is a front view of an operation / display panel of the coin sorting device.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the internal structure of the coin sorting device.

FIG. 4 is a partially broken front view showing a structure of a coin sorting mechanism of the coin sorting apparatus.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged front view of a main part (rotor part) of the coin sorting mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of the coin sorting device.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram linearly showing a relationship between a rotor and a stator.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of assigning denominations to each coin passage hole.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of the operation timing of the actuator when the allocation of denominations to each coin passage hole is set as shown in FIG.

FIG. 10A is a front view of a main part showing a configuration example of a conventional coin sorting apparatus, and FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view of the main part.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: Coin slot 2: Operation / display panel 3: Coin stock unit 20: Coin separation accommodating unit 21: Rotor 22: Stator (fixed plate) 24a to 24i: Coin passage hole 25a to 25h: Shutter 26a to 26h: Shutter drive Apparatus 27: Control circuit board (Control apparatus) 30: Denomination sensor 49: Rotor rotation drive mechanism 100: Coin sorting apparatus 101: Apparatus main body 110 (101A): Coin sorting mechanism

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A sprocket-shaped rotor having a plurality of coin separating and accommodating portions on an outer peripheral portion for separating and transporting a plurality of coins put together at a time one by one, and accommodating and tilting the rotor. A stator to be held, a denomination discriminating sensor provided to face a coin passing area accompanying rotation of the rotor to discriminate a denomination of each coin conveyed by the rotor, and a denomination discriminating sensor. A plurality of coin passing holes provided behind the rotor facing the coin passing area accompanying the rotation of the rotor, in order to sort coins after the denomination by the sensor into denominations; and the plurality of coin passing holes. A plurality of shutters for individually closing and opening the plurality of shutters, a plurality of shutter driving devices for individually opening and closing the plurality of shutters, and an output from the denomination sensor. And a controller for selectively operating the plurality of shutter driving devices according to the discrimination result. 2. The shutter is hinged to the stator so as to be pivotable rearward, and the shutter driving device includes an electromagnetic solenoid type linear actuator having a movable iron core connected to the shutter. The coin sorting device according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The coin sorting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a foreign matter passage hole for discharging foreign matter is formed in a lower portion of the stator. 4. The coin sorting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the denomination discriminating sensor is a sensor whose output changes according to the diameter of each discrimination target. 5. The coin sorting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said denomination sensor is a photosensor extending in a radial direction of said rotor. 6. The denomination sensor comprises: a light receiving portion extending in a radial direction of the rotor; and a light emitting portion for irradiating light to the light receiving portion, facing each other via a coin transport area by the rotor. 6. The coin sorting device according to claim 5, wherein the coin sorting device is an interrupt type photo sensor. 7. The coin according to claim 6, wherein the denomination sensor is arranged at a position where the light receiving portion is partially shielded by coins conveyed by the rotor. Sorting device. 8. In the stator, a limit position at which all coins can move radially outward of the rotor when passing through the detection area of the denomination sensor is constant regardless of the denomination. The coin sorting device according to any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein a guide wall is formed by the rotor to be in sliding contact with an outer peripheral portion of the coin being conveyed. 9. The coin sorting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the guide wall is a circular or arc-shaped wall formed so as to surround the rotor. 10. A denomination to be assigned to which coin passing hole among the plurality of coin passing holes can be arbitrarily changed by changing a program or data written in a memory in the control device. The coin sorter according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein 11. The correspondence between the output from the denomination discriminating sensor and the denomination can be arbitrarily changed by changing a program or data written in a memory in the control device. Claims 1 to 10
The coin sorting device according to any one of the above.