CN110874881B - Paper sheet handling apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A paper sheet handling apparatus, an automatic cash transaction apparatus, and an automatic cash transaction system flexibly supporting various deposit and withdrawal transaction modes of a user are provided. The paper sheet processing apparatus includes: a money receiving unit that receives money received from a substantially horizontally disposed banknote; a deposit and withdrawal unit which accepts the deposit of banknotes that are placed substantially upright, and which delivers the banknotes that are placed substantially upright; a recognition unit which recognizes the paper money; a temporary holding unit that temporarily stores the banknotes that are dispensed from the deposit and withdrawal unit and that are recognized as being acceptable by the recognition unit; a plurality of storage sections for storing banknotes; a conveyance path that is connected to the deposit and withdrawal unit, the escrow unit, and the plurality of storage units via the recognition unit, and that conveys banknotes in both directions; and a sub-transport path connecting the deposit unit and the transport path.

Description

Paper sheet handling apparatus

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a paper sheet handling apparatus, and is suitably applied to a banknote handling apparatus that is mounted and used in, for example, an Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) or a Cash Dispenser (CD) that automatically performs Cash in and out by a user's operation.

Background

As the denominations of cash to be processed become larger and the number thereof becomes larger in automatic cash transaction apparatuses, for example, a banknote processing apparatus is proposed in which a storage unit for storing banknotes of as large a capacity as possible is mounted. In addition, a clerk at a window of a bank or the like often uses the automatic teller machine itself to deposit deposited banknotes from a customer from the deposit unit and store them in the banknote handling device, and to transfer the banknotes dispensed from the banknote handling device to the deposit unit to the customer. In such a usage, the number of banknotes to be stored from a customer is various, and for example, a large number of banknotes in a thousand unit may be brought by a large number of users who want to pay for sales money in a store or the like.

Patent documents 1 and 2 disclose a banknote handling apparatus in which a plurality of storage units are arranged side by side in a lower portion of the apparatus, and other mechanism units are arranged to be collected in an upper portion of the apparatus.

In the banknote handling apparatus disclosed in patent document 1, a banknote deposit and withdrawal unit, a recognition unit, and a temporary storage unit are disposed in an upper portion of the apparatus, a vertically long banknote adding unit and a plurality of storage units are disposed in a front-rear direction of the apparatus in a lower portion of the apparatus, and these mechanism units are connected by a bidirectional transport path.

Further, the banknote handling apparatus disclosed in patent document 2 includes a deposit unit in which banknotes are placed substantially horizontally, and performs deposit transport from the deposit unit to the inside of the box and withdrawal transport from the storage unit to the discharge unit outside the box by storing the banknote recognition unit and the storage unit, excluding the deposit unit and the discharge unit, in the box of the safe.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent application laid-open No. 2011-113160

Patent document 2: japanese unexamined patent publication No. 2016-012180

Disclosure of Invention

However, in the banknote handling apparatus disclosed in patent document 1, the deposit unit is of a pocket type in which the deposited banknotes are placed in an upright state, and the number of banknotes that can be deposited into the deposit unit is limited by the capacity of the deposit unit. Therefore, for example, a large number of users who want to deposit a large number of banknotes in a unit of thousand must divide the deposit transaction into several times and perform the deposit transaction, which results in a long deposit transaction time. Even if the capacity of the deposit unit is increased, the user has a trouble of placing a large number of banknotes in the deposit unit in an upright state in alignment.

In the banknote handling apparatus disclosed in patent document 2, the deposit unit is of an open hopper type in which the deposited banknotes are placed in a horizontal state, and thus the banknotes can be easily deposited. Further, since the deposit can be accumulated and increased, it is expected that the deposit transaction operability will be improved and the deposit transaction time will be shortened. However, in the banknote handling apparatus disclosed in patent document 2, it is difficult to collect banknotes left behind by the user into the apparatus. Further, the banknote handling machine disclosed in patent document 2 has a safety problem in that the housing of the safe is broken and paper money is not left behind even if the simple opening/closing shutter is mounted on the dispensing unit because the dispensing unit is located outside the housing of the safe. As described above, when the banknote handling apparatus disclosed in patent document 2 is operated, it is necessary for the machine operator to always wait in the vicinity of the banknote handling apparatus, and it is difficult to perform unmanned operation (for example, 24-hour operation).

In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to flexibly cope with various deposit and withdrawal transaction modes of a user.

In order to solve the problem, the present invention provides a paper sheet handling apparatus comprising: a money receiving unit that receives money received from a substantially horizontally disposed banknote; a deposit and withdrawal unit which accepts the deposit of banknotes that are placed substantially upright, and which delivers the banknotes that are placed substantially upright; a recognition unit which recognizes the paper money; a temporary holding unit that temporarily stores the banknotes that are dispensed from the deposit and withdrawal unit and that are recognized as being acceptable by the recognition unit; a plurality of storage sections for storing banknotes; a conveyance path that is connected to the deposit and withdrawal unit, the escrow unit, and the plurality of storage units via the recognition unit, and that conveys banknotes in both directions; and a sub-transport path connecting the deposit unit and the transport path.

Effects of the invention

According to the invention, the method and the system can flexibly correspond to various deposit and withdrawal transaction modes of the user.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an external perspective view of an automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 2 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1, as viewed from the back side.

Fig. 3 is an external perspective view of another example of the automatic teller machine.

Fig. 4 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to another example, as viewed from the back side.

Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of an automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view showing the configuration of a deposit section of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing a structure of a deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing a mass depositing process using a depositing unit of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 11 is an explanatory diagram of a direct deposit operation by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 12 is an explanatory diagram of the rejected banknote immediate return operation in the direct deposit by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 13 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote storing operation in direct deposit by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 14 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote returning operation in the direct deposit by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 15 is a schematic view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1 when the shutter of the deposit and withdrawal unit is closed.

Fig. 16 is a schematic view of the automatic teller machine of embodiment 1 showing a half-opened state of the shutter of the deposit and withdrawal unit.

Fig. 17 is a schematic view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1 with the shutter of the deposit and withdrawal unit opened.

Fig. 18 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine of embodiment 1 with only the open/close shutter of the deposit unit in an open state.

Fig. 19 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1 when a large amount of banknotes are deposited into the deposit unit.

Fig. 20 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1 after banknotes have been inserted into the insertion unit during large-volume insertion.

Fig. 21 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine of embodiment 1 showing abnormal banknote feeding during large-volume deposit.

Fig. 22 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1, when a large amount of banknotes are deposited, that have been transported abnormally, and when the banknotes are taken out of the deposit and withdrawal unit and are reintroduced into the deposit and withdrawal unit.

Fig. 23 is a schematic view of an operation screen at the time of selecting a transaction mode in the automatic cash transaction apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 24 is a schematic view of an operation screen for urging the deposit banknotes to be deposited when a large amount of money is deposited in the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 25 is a schematic view showing an operation screen for increasing the accumulation of banknotes deposited in the case of large-volume deposit in the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 26 is a schematic view of an operation screen for urging the rearrangement of the rejected and returned banknotes at the time of large-volume deposit in the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 27 is a flowchart showing a normal deposit process using the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 28 is an explanatory diagram of a deposit counting operation of the deposit and withdrawal unit using the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 29 is an explanatory diagram of a deposit and storage processing operation of the deposit and withdrawal unit using the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 30 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1, in which the open/close shutters of the deposit and withdrawal units are fully closed.

Fig. 31 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine of embodiment 1 when banknotes are inserted into the deposit and withdrawal unit during normal deposit.

Fig. 32 is a schematic view of an operation screen for urging the deposit banknotes to be deposited at the time of normal deposit in the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 33 is an explanatory diagram of a dispensing process operation in the deposit and withdrawal unit using the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 34 is an explanatory diagram of a reject processing operation at the time of dispensing by the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 35 is an explanatory diagram of an operation of the left behind banknote collection process using the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 36 is an explanatory diagram of a deposited banknote collection processing operation in the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote processing apparatus according to another example.

Fig. 37 is a diagram for explaining an operation mode of the automatic cash transaction apparatus according to embodiment 1.

Fig. 38 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of a banknote handling apparatus including a two-stage storage unit according to embodiment 2.

Fig. 39 is an explanatory diagram of a direct deposit operation of a deposit section using the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 2.

Fig. 40 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote storing operation in direct deposit by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 2.

Fig. 41 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote returning operation in the direct deposit by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 2.

Fig. 42 is an explanatory diagram of a deposit storage processing operation in the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 2.

Fig. 43 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of a banknote handling apparatus including a wind-up escrow unit according to embodiment 3.

Fig. 44 is an explanatory diagram of a direct deposit operation using a deposit section in the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 3.

Fig. 45 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote storing operation in direct deposit using a deposit section in the banknote handling device of embodiment 3.

Fig. 46 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote returning operation in the direct deposit using the deposit section in the banknote handling device of embodiment 3.

Fig. 47 is an explanatory diagram of a deposit storing process operation using a deposit section in the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 3.

Description of reference numerals:

1. 1B, 1C … … banknote handling device, 1S … … cash automatic transaction system, 10a, 10B, 10C, 10d, 10e, 10f, 10g, 10h, 30a, 40a, 50B, 70a, 70B, 71a, 72a, 73a, 74B, 74C, 80a … … transport path, 10i … … sub-transport path, 20 … … deposit and withdrawal section, 20a … … open/close shutter, 30 … … identification section, 40, 80 … … temporary holding section, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74 … … storage section, 74-1 … … lower storage section, 74-2 … … upper storage section, 101 … … cash automatic transaction device, 104 … … screen operation section, 104a … … display screen, 120 … … deposit section, 120a … … open/close shutter, 170 … … control section, 175-175 a … … detection sensor, 1000 … … safe, 1205 … … service management device, 1206 … … reception terminal, 1207 … … storage device.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The following examples are not intended to limit the invention. In the drawings for describing the following embodiments, the same reference numerals denote constituent elements and processes having the same or similar functions, and the description thereof that will be given later is omitted. The embodiments and modifications may be combined in a part or all of the scope of the technical idea of the present invention and within a matching range.

In the following embodiments, the vertical direction (upper direction ) of the apparatus casing of the automatic cash transaction apparatus is defined as the positive direction of the Z axis, the direction from the user side (front side, front) to the opposite side (back side, rear) of the apparatus casing of the automatic cash transaction apparatus is defined as the positive direction of the Y axis, and the direction from the left side to the right side facing the user side of the automatic cash transaction apparatus is defined as the positive direction of the X axis. In the following description of the embodiments, a standard XYZ coordinate system in which the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis are orthogonal to each other is used. In the following embodiments, directions and positions indicated by "up", "down", "left", "right", "front", "back", and the like are merely relative to each other, and the orientation, shape, or size of the automatic teller machine, the banknote handling machine, and other components are not limited by the XYZ coordinate system.

In the following embodiments, the paper sheet handling apparatus will be described by taking as an example a banknote handling apparatus that handles banknotes as paper sheets, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and various other types of paper sheets such as checks and gift certificates can be handled similarly.

[ example 1 ]

< A: integral structure of automatic cash transaction device

Fig. 1 is an external perspective view of an automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1. Fig. 2 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1, as viewed from the back side.

The automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 performs processing such as depositing cash, payment, and transfer by a user operation using a cash card, paper money, a receipt, and the like as a transaction medium. The automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 includes a passbook processing unit 106 for processing a passbook of a user and printing transaction details and sending out the passbook, and a card and receipt processing unit 107 for processing a card of the user and printing a transaction receipt and sending out the transaction receipt.

The bankbook processing means 106 processes a bankbook of a user who is loaded from a slot 106a on the front surface of the automatic teller machine 101, prints a transaction specification, and sends out the transaction specification. The card and receipt processing means 107 processes the card of the user inserted from the slot 107a on the front surface of the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101, prints a transaction receipt, and feeds out the transaction receipt. A screen operating unit 104 for displaying the contents of a transaction by a user and inputting various information and items for the transaction is provided on the front side of the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101. The deposit unit 120 on the front side of the automatic teller machine 101 can execute a deposit transaction of accepting the deposit of banknotes placed substantially horizontally when the openable shutter 120a is in the open state.

The lower part of the apparatus case of the automatic teller machine 101 is provided with a banknote handling apparatus 1 for handling banknotes inside a secure safe 1000 for providing security on the right side, and the banknote deposit and withdrawal transaction is performed by opening and closing an opening and closing shutter 120a and an opening and closing shutter 20a provided in the deposit unit 120 and the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 of the banknote handling apparatus 1. That is, the automatic teller machine 101 is configured to be provided with a separate deposit/withdrawal unit 120 that can deposit a large number of banknotes, in addition to the deposit/withdrawal unit 20 that can deposit and withdraw a small number of banknotes, as in the conventional automatic teller machine.

In addition, an openable shutter 20a is provided in the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 of the automatic teller machine 101. As will be described later, since the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 of the banknote handling device 1 is provided with an openable shutter (upper plate 23) different from the openable shutter 20a, the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 has a double openable shutter structure.

The automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 is provided with a coin processing apparatus 105 for processing coins on the lower left side thereof, and performs a deposit and withdrawal transaction of coins by opening and closing an opening and closing shutter 105a provided in a deposit and withdrawal unit of the coin processing apparatus 105. In the automatic teller machine 101, the coin handling device 105 may be omitted.

Fig. 2 shows a state in which the door 102 on the back side and the door 10002 of the safe 1000 are opened, and the tray 1114 is drawn out from the banknote handling apparatus 1 through the rail 1102 and the rail 1112. The tray 1114 is detachably mounted with a plurality of storage units 70 to 74 arranged in a row from the back side to the front side of the automatic teller machine 101.

The banknote handling apparatus 1 is entirely covered with the secure safe 1000 as described above, the safe 1000 is provided with a door 10002 of the safe, and the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 of the banknote handling apparatus 1 is provided with an opening having a minimum size necessary for depositing and withdrawing banknotes and a hole having a minimum size necessary for transporting banknotes connected to the banknote handling apparatus 1 through a sub transport path 10i to be described later.

(Integrated Structure of automatic Cash transaction apparatus of other example)

Fig. 3 is an external perspective view of another example of the automatic teller machine. Fig. 4 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to another example, as viewed from the back side. As another example of the external appearance of the automatic cash transaction apparatus, an automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 is shown in fig. 3. As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the automatic teller machine 101 includes a screen operating unit 104, a passbook processing mechanism 106, a slot 106a, a card and receipt processing mechanism 107, a slot 107a, and an operating unit 119 on the upper portion thereof. On the other hand, the banknote handling apparatus 1 is mounted in a lower portion of the apparatus case of the automatic teller machine 101, and banknote deposit and withdrawal transactions are performed by opening and closing the openable and closable shutter 120a and the openable and closable shutter 20a provided in the deposit unit 120 and the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 of the banknote handling apparatus 1.

Here, as shown in fig. 3, the operation portion 119 is disposed at a position slightly recessed toward the back side of the upper front surface of the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101, thereby securing safety. Fig. 4 shows a state where the door 112 on the back surface of the automatic teller machine 101 and the door 10002 of the safe 1000 are opened, and the tray 1114 is drawn out from the banknote handling machine 1 through the rail 1102 and the rail 1112, and the storage units 70 to 74 are arranged in a row in the tray 1114 and are detachably mounted.

(function structure of automatic teller machine in embodiment 1)

Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of an automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1. As shown in fig. 5, the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 is configured to be connected to a server 1203 via a network 1204 such as a private line network or a closed area network by a communication processing unit 1202 mounted in the apparatus of the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101. In addition, a control unit 1201 such as a microprocessor which is responsible for controlling the operation of the entire automatic teller machine 101 is mounted in the automatic teller machine 101, and control signals are transmitted from the control unit 1201 to the banknote handling device 1, the screen operating unit 104, the coin handling device 105, the passbook handling mechanism 106, and the card and receipt handling mechanism 107, thereby controlling various devices and various mechanisms.

< B: internal structure of automatic cash transaction device

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1. A processing mechanism for banknotes to be dealt with is disposed on the upper part of the banknote processing apparatus 1, and a storage mechanism for banknotes is disposed on the lower part. In the upper part of the interior of the cabinet 1000 of the banknote handling apparatus 1, a pocket-type deposit and withdrawal unit 20 is disposed on the front side (the side facing the user: the upper right side in fig. 6), and the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 receives the deposit of banknotes that are placed substantially upright by the user and delivers the banknotes substantially upright for the user to take out. Further, a recognition unit 30 for discriminating banknotes is disposed in the center, and a escrow unit 40 for temporarily storing banknotes deposited by the user until the transaction is completed is disposed on the rear side (upper left side in fig. 6). These mechanism sections are connected by bidirectional conveyance paths 10a, 30a, 10d, 10e, and 10 f.

Further, the deposit unit 120 into which the user deposits banknotes is disposed at an upper portion outside the housing of the safe 1000 and in the vicinity of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, at a position where the user can deposit banknotes as in the case of depositing the banknotes into the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 or smoothly accumulate and increase the banknotes taken out of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20. The deposit unit 120 is an open funnel type deposit unit dedicated to deposit, and is connected to the transport path 10e via the sub transport path 10i disposed outside the housing of the safe 1000, and further via a hole (having a sufficient size for transporting bills) opened in the housing of the safe 1000, between the recognition unit 30 and the temporary holding unit 40 inside the housing of the safe 1000, and via the bypass gate 14.

The sub transport path 10i is connected to the transport path 10e via the bypass gate 14, and can transport the banknotes inserted into the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 through a transport path including the transport paths 50a, 30a, and 10d to 10g, which is the same as a conventional transport path for transporting the banknotes deposited and withdrawn via the deposit and withdrawal unit 20.

Here, the recognition unit 30 can perform denomination discrimination and authenticity discrimination for both the banknotes transported from the front to the rear and the banknotes transported from the rear to the front. That is, the recognition unit 30 can perform denomination discrimination and authenticity discrimination on the banknotes transported in both directions, and can discriminate whether or not the banknotes can be accepted. A bill feeding unit 20b for feeding the bills fed from above downward, and a bill stacking unit 20c for stacking the bills for dispensing or returning conveyed from below are disposed in front of and behind the depositing and dispensing unit 20.

At the lower part of the paper money processing device 1, storage parts 71-74, 70 for storing paper money for each denomination are arranged by being mounted on a tray 1114 from the front to the back. Here, in the present embodiment, the storage unit 70 is a destination of transport for temporarily storing rejected banknotes determined by the recognition unit 30 to be not receivable when the deposit transaction is performed from the deposit unit 120, and the storage unit 74 is a destination of transport for storing banknotes that are not suitable for the deposit transaction or the withdrawal transaction. That is, the temporary holding section 40 and the storage section 70 are arranged from above on the back surface side of the banknote handling apparatus 1. The driving of each mechanism unit, for example, the driving of the rollers of the transport path, the switching of the gate of the transport path, and the like, are drive-controlled by a control unit 170 (see fig. 9) provided in the banknote handling device 1.

The conveyance paths 10a, 10d to 10g, 30a, 40a, 50b, 70a to 74a, and the like form bidirectional conveyance paths, the conveyance paths 10b, 10c, 10i, and 10h form unidirectional conveyance paths, and the direction of an arrow shown in fig. 6 indicates the direction in which the bill is conveyed. In particular, the unidirectional conveyance path 10i is referred to as a sub conveyance path 10 i. The deposit and withdrawal unit 20 is connected to the conveyance path 10b, the temporary holding unit 40 is connected to the conveyance path 40a, the storage units 70 to 74 are connected to the conveyance paths 70a to 74a, respectively, and the deposit unit 120 is connected to the sub-conveyance path 10 i. The storage section 70 is switched by the shunt gate 54 and connected to the conveyance path 50 b. The conveyance path 40a is connected between the conveyance path 10f and the conveyance path 10g via a branch gate 15 located between the conveyance path 10f and the conveyance path 10 g. The sub conveyance path 10i is connected between the conveyance path 10e and the conveyance path 10f via a separation gate 14 located between the conveyance path 10e and the conveyance path 10 f.

The conveyance paths 10a, 30a, 10d to 10g, and 50a forming the loop-shaped bidirectional conveyance path have a first conveyance direction for conveying the banknotes in a counterclockwise direction (left-hand direction in fig. 6) and a second conveyance direction for conveying the banknotes in a clockwise direction (right-hand direction in fig. 6).

The conveyance path 50b as a bidirectional conveyance path includes a first conveyance direction in which the banknotes are conveyed from the bypass gate 16 to the storage unit 74 and the storage unit 70, and a second conveyance direction in which the banknotes are conveyed from the storage unit 74 and the storage unit 70 to the bypass gate 16.

In the unidirectional transport path, the transport direction of the transport path 10b is a direction from the banknote feeding unit 20b to the bypass gate 11, the transport direction of the transport path 10c is a direction from the bypass gate 13 to the banknote stacking unit 20c, the transport direction of the sub-transport path 10i is a direction from the deposit unit 120 to the bypass gate 14, and the transport direction of the transport path 10h is a direction from the recognition unit 30 and the bypass gate 12 to the banknote stacking unit 20 c.

In the transport paths 10a, 30a, 10d to 10g, and 50a forming the endless transport path via the recognition unit 30, the transport path 10g and the transport path 50a are connected to the transport path 50b by the routing gate 16, regardless of which direction the banknotes are transported.

In each mechanism unit including the transport paths 10a, 30a, 10d to 10g, and 50a, a drive motor 176 (see fig. 9) for driving the transport path, an electromagnetic solenoid (not shown) for switching a branch gate for switching the transport path (the branch gates are collectively referred to as the branch gate 177 (see fig. 9)), a detection sensor (not shown) for detecting transport of the banknotes, and the like are arranged, and the drive motor and the electromagnetic solenoid necessary for driving in accordance with transaction of the banknotes, and the transport state of the banknotes is monitored using a detection signal of the detection sensor.

In the present embodiment, the detection sensor attached to the conveyance paths 10i, 10e, and 10d among the plurality of detection sensors is the detection sensor 175-a. In the drawings, a part of the detection sensors 175-a mounted in the conveyance path 10i is illustrated. The plurality of detection sensors 175-a are arranged in parallel at predetermined intervals in the direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction, and detect the timing and light shielding duration at which each detection sensor is shielded from light by the passage of the conveyed bill. The banknote processing apparatus 1 monitors the conveyance state of the banknotes based on the detection results of the plurality of detection sensors 175-a.

The deposit unit 120 and the transport path 10i are provided outside the housing of the safe 1000, but they can be attached to and detached from the housing of the safe 1000 as a unit, and even in a state where the deposit unit 120 and the transport path 10i are detached, the deposit and withdrawal transaction using the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 is not hindered. The deposit unit 120 and the conveyance path 10i may be configured to be detachable as separate units.

< C: banknote feed-out structure of deposit unit 120

Fig. 7 is a sectional view showing the configuration of a deposit section of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1. Fig. 7 schematically shows, in a cross-sectional view, a main roller structure related to the bill feeding from the deposit unit 120 to the conveyance path 10 h.

As shown in fig. 7, the deposit unit 120 includes an open recess 121 whose upper end is open. The opening recess 121 accumulates and holds the received bill B on the inclined bottom wall, and the bill B is surrounded by the side wall around the recess and the bill end side wall 123. The deposit unit 120 includes a feed path unit 124 formed of the lower end of the banknote end side wall 123 and the inclined bottom wall of the open recess 121, and the open recess 121 is connected to the conveyance path 10h at the bottom corner of the feed path unit 124.

The deposit unit 120 includes a plurality of delivery rollers, i.e., a first banknote delivery roller 125, a second banknote delivery roller 126, and a third banknote delivery roller 127, on the inclined bottom wall of the open recess 121. Each of these feed rollers rotates by projecting a roller peripheral wall from the inclined bottom surface of the opening recess 121. The deposit unit 120 rotationally drives the feed rollers in the direction of the arrow shown in fig. 7, and feeds the banknotes B stacked in the open recess 121 one by one from the banknote B on the stacking lower side to the feed path unit 124 and the transport path 10h connected to the feed path unit 124. Since the radius of a part of the outer circumference arc of the banknote feeding first roller 125 is made larger than the radius of the other arcs, the banknotes B stacked in the open recess 121 are moved up and down and fed out from the banknotes B on the stacking lower side to the feeding path portion 124. The deposit unit 120 includes a first auxiliary roller, not shown, for feeding a banknote in a circular shape, in parallel with the first roller 125 for feeding a banknote.

In addition, the deposit unit 120 includes an impeller 128 on the lower end side of the banknote end side wall 123. A plurality of impellers 128 are disposed on the banknote end side wall 123, and the tips of the blades 129 are projected from the opening 123h of the banknote end side wall 123 into the opening recess 121. The blade 129 protruding in this way is provided so as to be able to contact the banknote B held in the open recess 121. The impeller 128 is rotationally driven under the control of a control unit 170, which will be described later, when the bill B is fed from the deposit unit 120, and has a plurality of blades 129 that come into contact with the end portion side of the bill B stacked on the lower side in the open recess 121.

In the present embodiment, since the impeller 128 is rotated in the direction of the arrow in the figure shown in fig. 7, the blades 129 are engaged with the end of the banknote B stacked on the lower side in the opening recess 121 from the upper side to the lower side of the banknote stack. Therefore, the banknotes B stacked in the open recess 121 are sequentially fed out one by one from the banknotes B on the stacking lower side to the feeding-out path portion 124 by the rotation of the feeding-out roller including the banknote feeding-out first roller 125 and the contact of the end of the blade 129.

Here, when the banknotes are fed out, there are cases where there are one banknote B received in the open recess 121 or one banknote B remaining at the uppermost part of the stacked banknotes. When one or more left and right banknotes Bn are bent as shown by the broken line in fig. 7 and are not in contact with the first banknote feed roller 125 and the second banknote feed roller 126, the banknote Bn is stopped with the leading end thereof in contact with the outer surface of the banknote end portion side wall 123, and remains in the open recess 121. In the deposit section 120 of the present embodiment, since the blade 129 is brought into contact with the banknote end of the banknote Bn in the stop posture as described above, the posture of the banknote Bn changes from the stop posture, and the banknote end is pressed toward the bottom corner of the opening recess 121. Thus, the banknote Bn that has been in the stop posture and has not been in contact with the feed roller is fed to the feed path portion 124 by being in contact with either or both of the banknote feed first roller 125 and the banknote feed second roller 126.

< D: paper money feeding/discharging structure of deposit/withdrawal part

Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing a structure of a deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1. As shown in fig. 8, the depositing and dispensing unit 20 is divided into a banknote feeding unit 20b that feeds banknotes received from a user into the banknote processing apparatus 1 one by one, and a banknote stacking unit 20c that stacks banknotes transported from the banknote processing apparatus 1 one by one in order to transfer the banknotes to the user at the time of the depositing operation and the rejecting operation, with the operation plate 90 as a boundary.

The bill feeding section 20b is a right part in fig. 8, and is configured by a pickup roller 31, a feed roller 32, a shutter roller 33, and an operation plate 90, which are rollers for feeding out bills existing in the bill feeding section 20b one by one.

When the banknotes are fed out from the banknote feeding unit 20b, the banknotes to be fed out are pressed against the pickup roller 31 by the operation plate 90 with a constant pressing force. The pickup roller 31 rotates in such a pressed state, and the banknotes are fed with a predetermined feeding force, and the fed banknotes are further conveyed in the direction of the conveyance path 10b while being prevented from being fed by the feed roller 32 rotating in the feeding direction and the shutter roller 33 facing thereto and not rotating in the feeding direction of the banknotes. When the pressing force decreases during the sending, a sensor, not shown, for detecting the pressing force is activated to move the operation plate 90 in a direction in which the pressing force increases.

The banknote stacking unit 20c is a portion on the left side in fig. 8, and includes a constantly rotating driving roller 34 for feeding the banknotes fed from the banknote handling apparatus 1 through the transport path 10c to the banknote stacking unit 20c, and a driven roller 95 and a pressing plate 91 which are driven to rotate by being brought into pressure contact with the driving roller 34. The passage sensor 22 is provided in the conveyance path 10c and detects the passage of the bill through the conveyance path 10 c. The banknote stacking unit 20c includes a plurality of loop sheet rollers 94(loop sheet rollers) independently driven by a driving member (not shown) coaxially with the driven roller 95. The banknote stacking unit 20c further includes a stacking guide 92 disposed so as to face the ring roller 94 and overlap each other.

The banknotes having passed through the transport path 10c are guided by the stacking guide 92 and stacked in the banknote stacking unit 20 c. In the banknote stacking unit 20c, the operation plate 90 is moved by a driving member, not shown, in accordance with the number of stacked banknotes, so that the stacking space can be enlarged. The bottom surface 93 of the banknote stacking unit 20c supports the end of the banknote. The upper plate 23 of the banknote stacking unit 20c covers the upper portion of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, and serves as an opening/closing shutter that is partially slid in the left-right direction of fig. 8 on the paper surface to be opened and closed. The upper plate 23 may be an opening/closing shutter that opens and closes as a whole.

The ring blade roller 94 is preferably formed of an elastic member (e.g., rubber, plastic). The ring-sheet roller 94 includes a ring (loop) portion 161 that has a function of applying a braking force to the entering bills to stop them, and a sheet (sheet) portion 162 that moves the bills to the storage space. In the present embodiment, a total of three combinations of the ring portion 161 and the piece portion 162 (hereinafter, referred to as ring pieces) are arranged at intervals of 120 ° around the rotation axis of the ring piece roller shaft 94p to be described later.

The amount of overlap ("δ" in fig. 8) between the ring roller 94 and the stack guide 92 is controlled by a phase plate (not shown) provided in the ring roller shaft 94 p. The ring roller 94 must be stopped at a predetermined position when the bills enter the stacking mechanism. The stop position of the ring-sheet roller 94 is referred to as a stacking waiting position. In the present embodiment, the stacking mechanism is configured to rotate each time a banknote enters the stacking mechanism, and any one of the three ring pieces is positioned at the stacking waiting position.

< E: functional structure of paper money processing device

Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1. The banknote handling machine 1 includes a deposit unit 120, a deposit and withdrawal unit 20, a recognition unit 30, a escrow unit 40, storage units 70 to 74, transport paths 10a to 10i, 30a, 40a, 50b, and 70a to 74, and a control unit 170 for controlling these units.

The control unit 170 mainly includes a main control unit 171 including a microprocessor for control and a memory 172. In particular, in the present embodiment, a plurality of (n) detection sensors 175 arranged in the conveyance paths 10a to 10i, 50a, and 50b to detect conveyance of banknotes, a plurality of (m) drive motors 176 that drive the conveyance paths 10a to 10i, 30a, 40a, 50b, and 70a to 74, and a branch gate 177 that switches conveyance of the conveyance paths 10a to 10i, 30a, 40a, 50b, and 70a to 74 are provided.

The main control unit 171 of the control unit 170 monitors the detection signal from the detection sensor 175, detects a passing or conveyance abnormality of the bill, and controls the conveyance of the bill in the forward or reverse direction by rotationally driving the drive motor 176 in the forward or reverse direction. The main control unit 171 controls switching of the bypass gate 177 to switch the transport path for transporting the banknotes or to change the storage destination of the banknotes. That is, the main control unit 171 controls operations such as starting and stopping of the conveyance operation of the banknotes on the conveyance path, switching of the conveyance direction, and switching of the separation gate in conjunction with the memory 172.

With the banknote handling device 1 configured as described above, it is possible to execute processing such as a banknote deposit operation using the deposit unit 120, a banknote deposit operation using the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, a banknote withdrawal operation, and a left behind collection. Hereinafter, each operation in example 1 will be described.

< F: banknote deposit action using deposit part

Next, the banknote deposit operation by the deposit unit 120 will be described with reference to fig. 10 to 26. Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing a mass depositing process using a depositing unit of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1. Fig. 11 to 14 are explanatory views of each banknote processing operation in the deposit unit of the banknote processing device according to embodiment 1. Fig. 15 to 17 are schematic views of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1 showing the respective states of the shutter of the deposit and withdrawal unit. Fig. 18 to 22 are external perspective views of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1 in various states. Fig. 23 to 26 are schematic views of operation screens of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

First, a schematic description will be given of a banknote deposit process operation performed by the deposit unit 120 in the banknote processing apparatus 1. The deposit process assumes that a user deposits a large amount of banknotes from the open hopper type deposit unit 120 during an operation time period (e.g., daytime operation) in which a clerk waits at all times, which can be supported, such as when a transaction is abnormal. The open hopper type deposit unit 120 is capable of sequentially additionally depositing (cumulatively depositing) banknotes as described later, and is therefore suitable for a deposit transaction in which a large number of banknotes are deposited, as compared with a deposit transaction using the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 in which the upper limit banknote amount thereof is limited in one deposit operation. The banknote deposit process using the deposit unit 120 mainly includes a direct deposit storage process in which the banknotes inserted into the deposit unit 120 are continuously authenticated, denomination-determined, counted, and stored.

The flow of a large amount of money in actual operation is shown with reference to fig. 10, and details of each operation will be described with reference to fig. 11 to 17. In the automatic teller machine 101, the opening/closing shutter 120a of the banknote handling device 1 is opened and the opening/closing shutter 20a is closed in advance during a time period in which the clerk waits in the vicinity (see fig. 18).

As shown in fig. 10, in the case of depositing money, the automatic teller machine 101 first displays a selection screen for the deposit transaction mode on the display screen 104a displayed on the screen operating unit 104 (see S001 and fig. 23). The user selects either the bulk deposit button 104a-3 (see fig. 23) or the general deposit button 104a-2 (see fig. 23). When the user presses the large-volume deposit button 104a-3, the large-volume deposit mode is selected (S002), and the automatic teller machine 101 urges the user to deposit banknotes for deposit in the deposit unit 120 (S003). This can be performed by audio output or display on the screen operating unit 104 (see fig. 24).

At this time, as shown in FIG. 24, a transaction cancel button 104a-1, a deposit start button 104a-4, and a partial image 104a-5 are displayed on the display screen 104 a. The transaction is suspended if the transaction cancel button 104a-1 is pressed, and the deposit is started if the deposit start button 104a-4 is pressed. The automatic teller machine 101 may switch the opening/closing shutter 120a from the closed state to the open state at this timing (after the user selects the large deposit mode).

When the user places the deposit banknotes in the deposit unit 120 (see S004, fig. 19, and fig. 20) and presses the deposit start button 104a-4 (see S005 and fig. 24) displayed on the display screen 104a, the automatic teller machine 101 moves to the deposit processing operation.

In the deposit processing operation, the banknote processing device 1 first checks whether or not there is a banknote in the deposit unit 120 by the detection sensor 175 (S006), and if there is a banknote, separation and conveyance of the banknote is started (S007). Further, the automatic teller machine 101 may be configured to prompt the user to increase the accumulation of banknotes appropriately when there is an increase in the accumulation of banknotes by switching the display of the display screen 104a to a screen displaying a partial image 104a-6 as shown in fig. 25 after the start of the separation and conveyance of the banknotes by the banknote processing machine 1.

To explain the operation with reference to fig. 11, in the banknote processing device 1, the bypass gate 14 is first switched to connect the conveyance path 10i and the conveyance path 10e to each other in the deposit processing operation from the deposit unit 120. The plurality of banknotes placed substantially horizontally in the deposit unit 120 are separated one by one and fed to the lower conveyance path 10 i. The banknotes sent out to the conveyance path 10i are conveyed to the recognition unit 30 through the conveyance path 10e and the conveyance path 10 d. The conveyance state of the banknotes fed out from the deposit unit 120 is monitored by the detection sensors 175-a attached to the conveyance paths 10i, 10e, and 10d, respectively.

The detection sensor 175-a is provided with, for example, four sensors at predetermined intervals in a direction perpendicular to the banknote conveyance direction. When the timing at which the first sensor of the four sensors detects the bill and the timing at which the second sensor detects the bill are greatly different from each other at the time of conveying the bill, the bill handling apparatus 1 determines that the bill is in a tilted (skew) state and determines that the bill is abnormally conveyed.

In addition, when at least one of the four sensors continuously detects a banknote for a time sufficiently longer than the banknote detection time when a banknote whose transport state is normal is transported, the banknote processing apparatus 1 determines that a plurality of banknotes are transported in series (continuous transport state) or that 1 banknote is in a vertical direction (large skew state), and determines that a banknote is abnormally transported. The conveyance-abnormal banknotes in the skew state, the continuous conveyance state, and the large skew state are conveyance-abnormal banknotes that are reliably determined to be rejected due to the reason of conveyance abnormality in the recognition unit 30, and therefore conveyance-abnormal banknotes are sent to the banknote stacking unit 20c without waiting for the result of the recognition unit 30 (see S008 and fig. 21).

To describe the operation with reference to fig. 12, the banknote processing machine 1 pushes out the timing at which the abnormal banknotes in conveyance reach the diversion gate 12 based on the rotation speed and rotation time of the drive motor 176 for the processing of the abnormal banknotes in conveyance without waiting for the determination result of the recognition unit 30, and drives the electromagnetic solenoid, not shown, before the abnormal banknotes in conveyance reach the diversion gate 12, so as to switch the diversion gate 12 to form the conveyance path 10h, thereby connecting the conveyance path 30a and the conveyance path 10 c. In addition, this operation is completed before the conveyance of the abnormal banknote reaches the bypass gate 12.

Here, in principle, the conveyance of the abnormal banknotes is detected by the recognition unit 30, but the bypass gate 12 is adjacent to the recognition unit 30, and therefore, depending on the conveyance speed of the banknotes and the processing capacity of the recognition unit 30, the switching of the processing of the bypass gate 12 after recognizing the conveyance of the abnormal banknotes may be delayed. Therefore, by detecting the conveyance abnormality in advance by the sensor provided in the conveyance path as described above, it is possible to reliably convey the abnormal banknote to the banknote stacking unit 20 c.

Thereafter, the abnormal banknotes are transported through the transport paths 30a, 10h, and 10c, and returned to the banknote stacking unit 20c of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 to be stacked. In order to return the abnormal banknotes to the user and insert the banknotes again at a higher speed, the automatic teller machine 101 opens the open/close shutter 20a at this stage (S009). Thus, the user can take out and transport the abnormal banknotes from the banknote stacking unit 20c, add them to the deposit unit 120, and drop them again (see S010 and fig. 22). At this time, the automatic teller machine 101 displays a partial image 104a-7 and a transaction cancel button 104a-1 as shown in fig. 26 on the display screen 104a of the screen operating unit 104.

In the process of opening the openable shutter 20a at S009 in fig. 10, the automatic teller machine 101 may stop the openable shutter 20a in the fully closed state 20a-1, as shown in fig. 15, at a position 20a-2 (see fig. 16) slightly closed with respect to the fully opened state 20a-3 (see fig. 17). When the shutter 20a is set to the fully open state 20a-3 (see fig. 17), since there is a possibility that the following abnormal banknotes are ejected from the banknote stacking unit 20c when being transported to the banknote stacking unit 20c of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, the shutter 20a is stopped in the half open state 20a-2 (see fig. 16) by monitoring the time during which the shutter 20a is driven during the process of opening the shutter 20a so as not to be obstructed when the abnormal banknotes are withdrawn and transported, and the banknotes can be withdrawn while preventing the ejection of the banknotes.

On the other hand, in the banknote processing device 1, when the detection sensor 175-a attached to each of the transport paths 10i, 10e, and 10d detects that the abnormal banknote is not being transported, the recognition unit 30 performs the discrimination (S011). The recognition unit 30 acquires an image and magnetic information of the passing bill by a sensor mounted therein, and discriminates (recognizes) the authenticity, denomination, and state of damage of the bill based on the acquired information. The banknote processing device 1 discriminates the destination of the banknote based on the discrimination result.

The banknote processing device 1 conveys banknotes that can be accepted as a result of the discrimination in the discriminating unit 30 to the storage units 71 to 73 (S012). When the operation is described with reference to fig. 11, the banknotes having passed through the recognition unit 30 are conveyed through the conveyance path 10a, and conveyed to the lower portion through the conveyance path 50a by the branch gate 11. The banknotes are transported through the transport path 50a, and are stored in one of the storage sections 71 to 73 by switching the bypass gates 51 to 53 according to the denomination determined by the identifier section 30.

When the banknote processing apparatus 1 determines that the banknote is not acceptable as a result of the determination in the recognition unit 30 and that the banknote is returned to the user (hereinafter, the banknote is referred to as a reject returned banknote), the reject returned banknote is temporarily stored in the storage unit 70 (S012).

When the operation is described with reference to fig. 13, the banknotes having passed through the recognition unit 30 are conveyed through the conveyance path 10a, and conveyed to the lower portion through the conveyance path 50a by the branch gate 11. The rejected and returned banknotes are conveyed through the conveyance path 50a, and the branching gate 54 is switched to connect the conveyance path 50b and the conveyance path 70a, and conveyed to the storage unit 70, where they are temporarily stored.

When the banknote processing device 1 is determined by the recognition unit 30 to be a damaged banknote unsuitable for recycling or an unrecycled banknote not assigned to the storage units 71 to 73 (hereinafter, the banknote is referred to as a reject collected banknote), the reject collected banknote is conveyed to the storage unit 74 (S012).

When the operation is described with reference to fig. 13, the banknotes having passed through the recognition unit 30 are conveyed through the conveyance path 10a, and conveyed to the lower portion through the conveyance path 50a by the branch gate 11. The rejected and collected banknotes are conveyed through the conveyance path 50a, and the branching gate 54 is switched to be connected to the conveyance path 74a, and conveyed to the storage unit 74.

After the conveyance of the deposit banknotes from the deposit unit 120 is completed, the rejected and returned banknotes temporarily stored in the storage unit 70 can be returned to the user and urged to be reinserted. When the returned banknotes are rejected (S013: YES), the banknote processing device 1 conveys the banknotes once stored in the storage unit 70 to the banknote stacking unit 20c (S014).

When the operation is described with reference to fig. 14, the banknotes fed out one by one from the storage unit 70 are conveyed to the recognition unit 30 through the conveyance paths 70a, 50b, 50a, and 10a, and are re-discriminated there. At this time, when the recognition unit 30 again determines that the returned banknotes are rejected, the banknote processing device 1 switches the bypass gate 13 to connect the transport path 10d and the transport path 10c, deposits the banknotes on the banknote stacking unit 20c via the transport path 10d and the transport path 10c, and returns the banknotes to the user.

On the other hand, when the result of the re-discrimination of the banknotes by the recognition unit 30 is that the banknotes can be accepted, the banknote processing apparatus 1 switches the separation gate 13 to connect the transport path 10d and the transport path 10e, switches the separation gate 14 to connect the transport path 10e and the transport path 10f, and switches the separation gate 15 to connect the transport path 10f and the transport path 40 a. The banknote processing apparatus 1 deposits receivable banknotes in the temporary holding section 40 via the transport paths 10d, 10e, 10f, and 40 a.

After the banknote handling apparatus 1 finishes transporting the banknotes from the storage unit 70, the automatic teller machine 101 opens the openable shutter 20a (S015) and returns the rejected and returned banknotes to the user (S016). In S016, the user may place the banknotes returned from the banknote stacking unit 20c of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 on the deposit and withdrawal unit 120 again. At this time, it is also considered that the rejected returned banknotes are returned from the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 located at a different position from the deposit unit 120, and therefore may not be noticed by the user who is performing the transaction. Therefore, the deposit transaction from the deposit unit 120 is preferably performed in a situation where the manager accompanies or waits nearby as described above.

Since the open hopper type deposit unit 120 can additionally deposit banknotes (accumulation incremental deposit) as described above, even when a large number of banknotes are deposited into the deposit unit 120 to the extent that they cannot be left alone, the user can additionally deposit banknotes in sequence until there are no banknotes held by hand for deposit. Note that, since the banknotes rejected and returned in the process are also returned from the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, the banknotes can be accumulated and input again from the deposit unit 120.

The banknote deposit unit 120 is provided with a residual banknote detection sensor for detecting whether or not there is any banknote remaining in the hopper, and the banknote processing apparatus 1 determines that the banknote transport is completed if a predetermined time has elapsed after the residual banknote detection sensor detects that there is no banknote remaining, assuming that there is no further additional deposited banknote (S017).

When the separation and conveyance of all banknotes by the banknote processing machine 1 are completed (S018), the automatic teller machine 101 displays the amount of money to be deposited on the display screen 104a displayed on the screen operation unit 104 (S019). When the user presses the deposit decision button (S020), the automatic teller machine 101 prints a receipt as needed (S021). The user collects the voucher printed in S021 (S022). The large-volume deposit process by the deposit unit 120 of the banknote processing apparatus 1 is completed as described above.

After the user confirms the number of banknotes deposited, the banknotes stacked in the escrow unit 40 are set to "G" below: the same route as the storing operation described in the banknote deposit and withdrawal operation "of the deposit and withdrawal unit is used for storing the banknotes in the respective cassettes. That is, even if the receivable banknotes are once discriminated as the rejected banknotes in the deposit from the deposit unit 120, the banknotes can be discriminated again by passing through the recognition unit 30 during the deposit process, and therefore, the effect of reducing the number of rejected banknotes in the deposit can be expected, and as a result, it is advantageous to improve the accuracy of discriminating the banknotes in the deposit transaction from the deposit unit 120.

< G: banknote deposit action using deposit and withdrawal unit

Hereinafter, the banknote deposit operation using the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 will be described with reference to fig. 27 to 32. Fig. 27 is a flowchart showing a normal deposit process using the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1. Fig. 28 to 29 are explanatory views of each banknote processing operation in the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote processing apparatus according to embodiment 1. Fig. 30 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1, in which the open/close shutters of the deposit and withdrawal units are fully closed. Fig. 31 is an external perspective view of the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1 when banknotes are inserted into the deposit and withdrawal unit during normal deposit. Fig. 32 is a schematic view of an operation screen for urging the deposit banknotes to be deposited at the time of normal deposit in the automatic teller machine according to embodiment 1.

First, a schematic description will be given of a money deposit process operation of the banknotes by the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 in the banknote processing apparatus 1. The deposit process assumes a transaction in which a user deposits money on paper money during an operation time period in which a machine operator is not present, such as at night, or during an operation of an automatic cash transaction apparatus that does not communicate with the machine operator. The banknote deposit process using the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 mainly includes a deposit counting process for performing authentication, denomination discrimination, and counting of banknotes inserted into the banknote feeding unit 20b of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20.

A flow of normal deposit in actual operation is shown with reference to fig. 27, and details of each operation will be described with reference to fig. 28 and 29. The automatic teller machine 101 sets both the open/close shutter 120a and the open/close shutter 20a of the banknote handling device 1 in the closed state (see fig. 30) during a time period when the clerk is not waiting in the vicinity.

As shown in fig. 27, in the case of depositing money, the automatic teller machine 101 first displays a selection screen for the deposit transaction mode on the display screen 104a displayed on the screen operating unit 104 (see S101 and fig. 23). The user selects either the bulk deposit button 104a-3 (see fig. 23) or the general deposit button 104a-2 (see fig. 23). When the user presses the normal deposit button 104a-2, the normal deposit mode is selected (S102), and the automatic teller machine 101 opens the shutter 20a (S103), thereby urging the user to deposit a deposit bill into the deposit and withdrawal unit 20. This can be performed by sound or display on the screen operating unit 104 (see fig. 32).

At this time, as shown in FIG. 32, a transaction cancel button 104a-1, a deposit start button 104a-4, and a partial image 104a-8 are displayed on the display screen 104 a. If the transaction cancel button 104a-1 is pressed, the transaction is terminated, and if the deposit start button 104a-4 is pressed, the deposit is started.

When the user places the banknotes for deposit on the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 (see S104 and fig. 31) and presses the deposit start button 104a-4 displayed on the display screen 104a of the screen operating unit 104 (S105), the automatic teller machine 101 closes the open/close shutter 20a (S106), and moves to the deposit processing operation.

In the deposit process operation, the banknote handling apparatus 1 first checks whether or not there is a banknote in the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 by the detection sensor 175 (S107), and if there is a banknote, separation and conveyance of the banknote is started (S108).

To explain the operation with reference to fig. 28, the banknote processing apparatus 1 separates a plurality of banknotes, which are substantially upright in the banknote sending-out portion 20b of the deposit and withdrawal portion 20, one by one, and sends out the separated banknotes to the lower conveyance path 10 b. The banknotes fed out to the conveyance path 10b pass through the conveyance path 30a in the recognition unit 30 from the front to the rear (from right to left in fig. 28) of the conveyance path 10 a.

The recognition unit 30 acquires an image and magnetic information of the passing bill by a sensor incorporated therein, and discriminates the authenticity, denomination, and worn state of the bill (S109). The bill having passed through the recognition unit 30 is temporarily conveyed upward from the rear portion of the recognition unit 30 through the conveyance path 10 d. While the banknotes are being conveyed through the conveyance path 10d, the discrimination by the discriminating portion 30 is completed, and the switching of the gate 13 is performed based on the result of the discrimination.

That is, when the banknote processing apparatus 1 is determined to be a receivable banknote by the recognition unit 30, the bypass gate 13 is switched to connect the transport path 10d and the transport path 10e, and the banknote is transported through the transport paths 10d, 10e, 10f, and 40a and stacked in the escrow unit 40 (S110).

On the other hand, when the banknote processing apparatus 1 is determined to be a banknote that cannot be accepted by the recognition unit 30, the bypass gate 13 is switched to connect the transport path 10d and the transport path 10c, and the banknote is returned to the banknote stacking unit 20c, stacked, and returned to the user (S110).

When the banknote handling apparatus 1 has processed all the banknotes inserted into the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 and has rejected banknotes (yes in S111), the automatic teller machine 101 opens the opening and closing shutter 20a (S112) and allows the user to remove the banknotes from the banknote stacking unit 20c (S113). In the automatic teller machine 101, when the user pulls out the banknotes, a sensor (not shown) detects this and closes the shutter 20a (S114), and the amount of money deposited is displayed on the display screen 104a (S115).

When the user presses an additional deposit button (not shown) on the display screen 104a of the screen operation unit 104 when he/she wants to add a deposit (S116), the automatic teller machine 101 proceeds to S103. When the amount of money deposited matches the amount of money counted by the banknote processing device 1 and the user presses a deposit transaction determination button (not shown) on the display screen 104a of the screen operating unit 104 (S117) without additional deposit, the automatic teller machine 101 conveys the banknotes temporarily stored in the temporary holding unit 40 to the storage units 71 to 74 and stores (stores) the banknotes (S118).

The storage process described above will be described with reference to fig. 29. In the storage process, the banknote handling machine 1 first switches the switch gate 13 to connect the escrow unit 40 and the recognition unit 30, and switches the switch gate 11 to connect the transport path 10a and the transport path 50 a. The banknotes fed out one by one from the escrow unit 40 are conveyed to the recognition unit 30 through the conveyance paths 40a, 10f, 10e, and 10 d. The banknotes that have been re-recognized by the recognition unit 30 and passed through the recognition unit 30 are transported through the transport path 10a, and transported downward through the transport path 50a by the branch gate 11. The banknotes are transported through the transport path 50a, switched by the gates 51 to 53 according to the denomination determined by the identifier 30, and stored in one of the storage sections 71 to 73.

The banknotes discriminated as conveyance failure by the discriminating section 30 are conveyed to the storage section 74 for storing rejected and collected banknotes. This can prevent a transport error from occurring again when an inappropriate banknote is sent out of the storage for recycling (recycle), and the like, and can improve the continuity of normal operation of the banknote handling device 1 and the automatic teller machine 101.

On the other hand, when the banknote handling apparatus 1 is determined by the recognition unit 30 to be a damaged banknote unsuitable for recycling or an unrecycled banknote not allocated to the storage units 71 to 73, the bypass gate 54 is switched to connect the transport path 50b and the transport path 74a, and the unrecycled banknote is stored in the storage unit 74.

When the banknote handling apparatus 1 has completed separating and transporting all the banknotes in the escrow unit 40 (S119), the automatic teller machine 1 prints a receipt as needed (S120). The user collects the voucher printed in S120 (S121). The normal deposit process by the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 of the banknote processing apparatus 1 is completed as described above.

In the large-volume deposit mode, if the number of banknotes rejected for return due to conveyance failure or the like is small, it is also possible to select a deposit transaction from the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 as a reinsertion destination. When the user selects a refund after a large amount of money is deposited from the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, if there is no banknote in the escrow unit 40, the deposit count can be immediately performed. When there is a banknote in the escrow unit 40, the deposit counting is performed after the housing processing operation is performed and the escrow unit 40 is emptied.

The difference between the large deposit pattern and the normal deposit pattern is summarized as follows.

< Mass deposit mode >

(feature 1) a large number of banknotes can be continuously deposited as long as there is a capacity in the storage unit.

(feature 2) can be cumulatively increased, so the user's operation is small.

(feature 3) since the deposit unit 120 is directly transported to the storage units 70 to 71 without passing through the temporary holding unit 40, the transport distance is short.

< usual deposit mode >)

(feature 1) the number of banknotes that can be set 1 time has an upper limit.

(feature 2) when a large amount of money is to be collected, it is necessary to collect money several times, which is troublesome for the user.

(feature 3) after the banknotes are temporarily stored in the temporary holding section 40, the transport distance is long because the banknotes are deposited in the flow of counting → storing.

As is clear from the comparison of the above-described (features 1) to (feature 3), the large deposit pattern can further shorten the deposit transaction time and reduce the user's trouble.

< H: banknote dispensing action

Next, the dispensing transaction processing operation will be described with reference to fig. 33 and 34. Fig. 33 is an explanatory diagram of a dispensing process operation in the deposit and withdrawal unit using the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 1. Fig. 34 is an explanatory diagram of a reject processing operation at the time of dispensing by the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1.

In the dispensing transaction process, banknotes are fed out one by one from among the storage units 71 to 73 stored for each denomination, which store banknotes of the denomination for which dispensing is designated, are transported to the recognition unit 30 (transport path 30a) via the transport paths 50a and 10a, and the recognition unit 30 determines whether or not the banknotes are payable. When the banknotes that can be dispensed are determined by the recognition unit 30, the banknote processing apparatus 1 switches the bypass gate 13 to connect the transport path 10d and the transport path 10c, and deposits the banknotes in the banknote stacking unit 20c (see fig. 33).

On the other hand, if the banknotes that cannot be dispensed are determined by the recognition unit 30, the banknote processing apparatus 1 switches the bypass gate 13 to connect the transport path 10d and the transport path 10e, and then connects the transport path 74a via the transport paths 10f, 10g, and 50b via the bypass gate 54 to transport the banknotes to the storage unit 74 (see fig. 34). The discrimination in the banknote discriminating unit 30 and the switching control of the branch gate 13 according to the result of the discrimination are completed while the banknote is conveyed in the conveyance path 10 d.

When the banknote transport operation is completed, the opening/closing shutter 20a of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 is opened (see fig. 1), and the banknotes stacked in the banknote stacking unit 20c are in a state in which they can be removed by the user. The automatic teller machine 1 detects the withdrawal of banknotes by the user by a sensor (not shown) and closes the shutter 20a, thereby ending a series of dispensing transaction processes. In this way, in the dispensing transaction processing operation, the conveyance paths 50a, 10a, 30a, 10d to 10g are operated so as to convey the banknotes in the first conveyance direction (counterclockwise direction (left-hand direction in fig. 33 and 34)).

< I: forgotten paper money recovery action

Next, the operation of the collection processing of left behind banknotes will be described with reference to fig. 35. Fig. 35 is an explanatory diagram of an operation of the left behind banknote collection process using the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 1. The left behind banknote collection process operation is an operation of collecting banknotes stacked in the banknote stacking unit 20c of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 into the storage unit 74 when the user has left behind the banknotes.

In the forgotten-taken-banknote collection operation, the banknote processing device 1 first switches the diversion gate 13 to connect the transport path 10d and the transport path 10e, switches the diversion gate 14 to connect the transport path 10e and the transport path 10f, switches the diversion gate 15 to connect the transport path 10f and the transport path 10g, switches the diversion gate 16 to connect the transport path 10g and the transport path 50b, and switches the diversion gate 54 to connect the transport path 50b and the transport path 74 a. The banknotes left behind by the user after being dispensed to the banknote stacking unit 20c are pushed by the pushing plate 91 in the banknote stacking unit 20c and moved forward of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, and are fed one by one to the transport path 10 b. The banknotes pass through the conveyance paths 10a, 30a, 10d, 10e, 10f, 10g, 50b, and 74a and are stored in the storage section 74.

Next, with reference to fig. 36, a description will be given of another example of the deposited banknote collection processing operation. Fig. 36 is an explanatory diagram of a deposited banknote collection processing operation in the deposit and withdrawal unit of the banknote processing apparatus according to another example. In the example of fig. 28, during the deposit counting process, the bypass gate 15 is switched to store the banknotes judged by the recognition unit 30 to be unsuitable for recirculation, such as counterfeit banknotes, in the escrow unit 40. According to the alternative example shown in fig. 36, the banknote handling apparatus 1 switches the bypass gate 15 to connect the transport path 10f and the transport path 10g to each other, and stores the banknotes that are not suitable for recycling in the temporary holding section 40 in the storage section 74 through the transport paths 10d, 10e, 10f, 10g, 50b, and 74 a. The switching of the branch gate 15 is completed while the bill is conveyed in the conveyance path 10 d.

As described above, according to the banknote handling machine 1 of the embodiment 1 and the automatic teller machine 101 equipped with the banknote handling machine 1, since the open-hopper type deposit unit 120 is provided in addition to the normal deposit and withdrawal unit 20, it is possible to perform a deposit transaction in a short time for a user who has carried a large number of banknotes and intends to deposit.

< J: embodiment 1 operation method of automatic teller machine

Since the transaction operation using the open funnel type deposit unit 120 is different from that of the conventional automatic cash transaction apparatus, it is preferable that the clerk can support the transaction operation of the user as needed. An apparatus operation method of the automatic teller machine 101 according to embodiment 1 will be described below in consideration of this point.

Fig. 37 is a diagram for explaining an operation mode of the automatic cash transaction apparatus according to embodiment 1. As shown in fig. 37 (a), the automatic cash transaction system 1S according to embodiment 1 includes a server 1203 provided in a management center, and 1 or more automatic cash transaction apparatuses 101 connected via a network 1204.

(1) Time period based handover of device operation

In the business hours in which the manager is resident, the automatic teller machine 101 is configured to transmit an instruction to switch to the "business hours mode" from the server 1203 via the network 1204, and to set an operation mode (business hours (daytime) mode) that can be used by both the deposit unit 120 and the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 and can be selected by the user (see fig. 37 (a)). That is, the control unit 1201 of the automatic teller machine 101 causes the user to select which of the deposit unit 120 and the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 is used to deposit money at the time of a transaction in accordance with the display screen 104a (see fig. 23) of the screen operation unit 104 of the automatic teller machine 101, in response to an instruction from the server 1203.

In this case, for example, when the user advances the deposit of the maximum number of sheets that can be deposited or more by the deposit unit 20, the display screen 104a (see fig. 24) prompting the deposit from the deposit unit 120 may be displayed, or the user may be prompted to advance the deposit from the deposit unit 120 for a user who has a history of a large amount of deposits in the past through continuous transactions from the deposit unit 120 by referring to the previous transaction history of the user.

Alternatively, the operator or the like for assisting the user who wants to perform a transaction may operate a dedicated operator button or the like (not shown) provided in the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 to select either the deposit unit 120 or the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 to perform a transaction.

On the other hand, for example, during night operation in which the teller is absent, a switching instruction to the "night holiday mode" is transmitted from the server 1203 via the network 1204 (see fig. 37 (a)) to set an operation mode (nightholiday (nighttime period) mode) in which the deposit and withdrawal transaction from the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 can be performed only in the same or similar operation as that of the conventional automatic cash transaction apparatus, and when the user operates alone, the use of the deposit and withdrawal unit 120 is disabled so that confusion, operation errors, forgetting of banknotes, and the like do not occur. That is, during night operation, the opening/closing shutter 120a of the deposit unit 120 is always closed, thereby preventing the user from mistakenly inserting the deposit. Of course, the screen display for allowing the user to select which of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 and the deposit unit 120 to deposit money is not required as in the above-described deposit unit selection mode.

The switching between the "business hours mode" and the "night weekday mode" may be automatically switched by setting a switching time, a day of the week, or the like in a separate schedule or the like, or may be manually switched by a manager.

The switching between the "business hours mode" and the "night weekday mode" may be performed according to the presence or absence of a serviceable crew. Even during business hours, there are cases where a clerk, who is familiar with the operation of the automatic teller machine 101, is out. In such a case, the in-store status of the manager can be switched based on the input of the manager itself to the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101, or can be automatically switched using information from the order management apparatus 1205 or the like.

Alternatively, only the deposit and withdrawal unit 120 may be used for a large amount of deposit in a business hours period, and only the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 may be used as in the conventional automatic teller machine such as a night holiday.

(2) An operating method for operating an automated teller machine in cooperation with a supervisor is envisaged

The above-described configuration is based on the idea that the use of the deposit unit 120 is permitted only when the manager waits for the manager to immediately respond to a situation such as an abnormality when the user performs a deposit transaction using the deposit unit 120. However, when the automatic cash transaction apparatus is operated by the first teller of the transaction along with the user, the automatic cash transaction apparatus can be operated more smoothly, and the occurrence of useless trouble can be reduced even in an abnormal state or the like. Specifically, the control is performed as follows.

When the user selects a transaction from the deposit unit 120 on the display screen 104a (see fig. 23) of the screen operation unit 104 of the automatic teller machine 101, the automatic teller machine 101 gives an instruction to the applicable staff member to go to the automatic teller machine 101 and to support the customer. The cashier who goes to the cash automatic transaction apparatus 101 sets the cash automatic transaction apparatus 101 so that the deposit from the deposit unit 120 can be made, using a setting unit or the like provided in the cash automatic transaction apparatus 101 and dedicated to the cashier. The opening/closing shutter 120a may be opened from closed at this timing.

Here, in a case where the machine operator cannot be dealt with immediately due to dealing with another customer or the like, or in a case where the machine operator does not arrive at the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 after a predetermined time has elapsed, the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 may guide the transaction using the deposit and withdrawal unit 20 in the screen operation unit 104, or may display a guide screen to guide the machine operator to a window where the machine operator is located.

The selection of the deposit unit 120 and the notification to the operator are not necessarily performed by the automatic teller machine 101, and may be performed by a receiving terminal (customer guidance terminal) or the like. As shown in fig. 37 (b), the reception terminal 1206 displays a reception screen for the user to select and input either one of the first transaction using the depositing and dispensing unit 20 and the second transaction using the depositing and dispensing unit 120. When the user selects and inputs the second transaction, the reception terminal 1206 notifies the operator of the second transaction, and transmits a second transaction request command requesting use of the deposit unit 120 to the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101. When receiving the second transaction request command, the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 allows the deposit unit 120 to be used in response to the instruction of the clerk. In this case, the user can also choose to wait for the arrival of the supervisor when the supervisor cannot immediately respond to the ticket, and in this case, the acceptance terminal 1206 can also issue the ticket.

(3) Operation method for allowing cashier to utilize deposit part 120 in a manner of no management of machine, limited to specific users

The above-described configuration is premised on the manager coping with the abnormality, but the user familiar with the operation of the automatic teller machine 101 may not need the support of the manager. Alternatively, when the user is trained in the operation of the automatic teller machine 101 in advance and the user is caused to finish presenting to the bank side the data indicating that the user does not request the correction even if the banknote is left behind in an abnormal situation, the transaction using the deposit unit 120 is permitted even if the clerk is not present.

Therefore, as shown in fig. 37 c, a mark for identifying the user permitted to use the deposit unit 120 alone may be included in the account information of the user and stored in the storage device 1207, and the automatic teller machine 101 may make the screen operation unit 104 display a display screen 104a (see fig. 23) for selecting one of the deposit unit 120 and the deposit and withdrawal unit 20, if it can be confirmed that the user is a user permitted to use the deposit unit 120 alone with reference to the storage device 1207 in the authentication at the start of the transaction. The storage 1207 may be provided inside the automatic teller machine 101.

Alternatively, even if the user who is not allowed to use the deposit unit 120 alone in advance has been described the operation method in the abnormal state, the risk due to the use alone by the unattended operation staff, and the like by the screen operation unit 104 at the start of the transaction, the user may be allowed to use the deposit unit 120 at the unattended operation time by making the input request not to the operator or manager of the automatic cash transaction apparatus 101 such as a store or a bank for compensation even when some trouble is caused by the operation by the unattended operation staff.

[ example 2 ]

In the above-described embodiment 1, the storage unit 70 capable of storing a large number of banknotes is used as a temporary storage unit for rejected and returned banknotes, and is useful in a case where a large number of rejected and returned banknotes may occur depending on the country or the region where the automatic teller machine 101 is installed. However, when the number of rejected and returned banknotes is not so large, it is not preferable to use the storage unit 70 as a temporary storage unit for rejected and returned banknotes.

That is, as long as an area for temporarily storing returned banknotes is secured in addition to the storage unit 70, the storage unit 70 can be used for other purposes (such as a receiving destination of banknotes at the time of deposit transaction), and as a result, the disposable banknote capacity can be increased. The following describes a configuration in which the temporary storage unit for rejecting the returned banknotes is other than the storage unit 70.

(1) The case of using the two-stage type storage part

Fig. 38 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of a banknote handling apparatus including a two-stage storage unit according to embodiment 2. In the banknote handling machine 1 of embodiment 1, the storage units 70 to 74 are each constituted by one storage box, but the following description will be given of a case where the storage unit 74 (see fig. 6) of embodiment 1 is replaced with a two-stage vertical split type storage unit constituted by a lower storage unit 74-1 and an upper storage unit 74-2 as shown in fig. 38, and further, the upper storage unit 74-2 is used as a second temporary holding unit, and the lower storage unit 74-1 is used as a rejected banknote collection unit. Here, the lower storage unit 74-1 is connected to the conveyance path 74a via the diversion gate 56 and the conveyance path 74c, and the upper storage unit 74-2 is connected to the conveyance path 74a via the diversion gate 56 and the conveyance path 74 b. With this configuration, the storage unit 70 can be newly used as a receiving destination of the banknotes to be dispensed, and the number of banknotes that can be circulated in the banknote handling apparatus 1B of embodiment 2 is increased, which is advantageous for improving the operation rate of the automatic teller machine.

The banknote deposit operation by the deposit unit 120 is similar to that in "F: in the banknote deposit operation using the deposit section ", the banknote deposit operation of example 1 described above is basically the same, but in fig. 11, the storage section 70 can be used as a storage destination capable of accepting banknotes in addition to the storage sections 71 to 73 capable of accepting banknotes. When the banknotes are stored in the storage unit 70, the bypass gate 54 is switched so that the transport path 50b is connected to the transport path 70a, and the banknotes are transported to the storage unit 70 through the transport paths 50a, 50b, and 70 a.

Fig. 40 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote storing operation in direct deposit by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 2. The operation of storing the deposit rejected banknotes in the depositing operation by the depositing unit 120 is similar to the operation performed in "F: in the banknote deposit operation using the deposit section ", compared to the deposit rejected banknote storing operation of embodiment 1 described above, the temporary storage destination of the banknotes may be replaced from the storage section 70 to the upper storage section 74-2. When the switching gate 56 is switched to connect the conveyance path 74a and the conveyance path 74b, the deposit-rejected banknotes are conveyed to the upper-stage storage unit 74-2 through the conveyance paths 50a, 50b, 74a, and 74 b.

On the other hand, in "F: in the banknote deposit operation using the deposit section, "the deposit rejected banknote collection operation according to embodiment 1 described above may be considered to replace the storage destination of the deposit rejected banknotes from the storage section 74 to the lower storage section 74-1. When the switching gate 56 is switched to connect the transport path 74a and the transport path 74c, the deposit-rejected banknotes are transported to the lower storage unit 74-1 through the transport paths 50a, 50b, 74a, and 74 c.

Fig. 41 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote returning operation in the direct deposit by the deposit unit of the banknote handling device according to embodiment 2. The operation of returning the deposit-rejected banknotes after the deposit operation is "F: in the banknote deposit operation using the deposit section, "the storage section that has sent out banknotes in the deposit rejected banknote returning operation of embodiment 1 described above may be replaced from the storage section 70 to the upper storage section 74-2. At this time, the switching gate 56 is switched to connect the transport path 74b and the transport path 74a, and the switching gate 54 is switched to connect the transport path 74a and the transport path 50 b. The inserted rejected banknotes pass through the conveyance paths 74c, 74a, 50b, 50a, and 10a in this order, and are conveyed to the recognition unit 30 a. Thereafter, with the method described in "F: the same procedure as in the deposit-rejected banknote return operation of example 1 is applied to the banknote deposit operation using the deposit unit.

Fig. 42 is an explanatory diagram of a deposit storage processing operation in the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 2. In the case of "G: in the above described deposit and storage operation in the banknote deposit and withdrawal operation using the deposit and withdrawal unit ", the receivable banknotes can be selected as the destination of the banknotes in the storage unit 70. The switching gate 54 connects the transport path 50b and the transport path 70a, and can accept banknotes that have passed through the transport paths 50a, 50b, and 70a and have been transported to the storage unit 70. On the other hand, banknotes that cannot be accepted may have their destinations replaced from the storage unit 74 to the lower storage unit 74-1. When the switching gate 54 is switched to connect the transport path 50b and the transport path 74a and the switching gate 56 is switched to connect the transport path 74a and the transport path 74c, the banknotes are transported to the lower storage unit 74-1 through the transport paths 50a, 50b, 74a, and 74 c.

[ example 3 ]

In example 3, as in example 2, in a situation where the number of returned rejected banknotes is not too large, a temporary storage section other than the storage section 70 for storing the returned rejected banknotes generated in the deposit transaction from the deposit section 120 is secured. Specifically, in example 3, a different escrow unit from the escrow unit 40 is used as a escrow unit other than the storage unit 70 for rejecting the returned banknotes.

Fig. 43 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of a banknote handling apparatus including a wind-up escrow unit according to embodiment 3. Fig. 44 is an explanatory diagram of a direct deposit operation using a deposit section in the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 3. In the configuration of fig. 43, below the escrow unit 40, an escrow unit 80, which is a second escrow unit having a banknote stacking mechanism, is disposed for storing rejected and returned banknotes generated in a deposit transaction from the deposit unit 120.

With the configuration of fig. 43, as shown in fig. 44, the storage unit 70 can be used as a new storage unit to receive banknotes for deposit. When the banknotes are stored in the storage unit 70, the gate 54 is switched so that the transport path 50b is connected to the transport path 70a, and the banknotes are transported to the storage unit 70 through the transport paths 50a, 50b, and 70 a.

Here, the temporary holding section 80 is composed of a thin-plate induction belt 83 made of stainless steel, a rotary drum 81 that winds bills conveyed together with the induction belt 83, and a winding shaft 82 that winds only the induction belt 83.

Further, as the configuration of the temporary holding section 80, not the wind-up type as in the present embodiment, but a stack-and-separate type in which banknotes are stacked and stored and separated one by one and fed out may be adopted, but a case in which the state of the banknotes of rejected and returned banknotes is deteriorated due to wrinkles, creases, or the like is also assumed, and therefore, in the case of handling a large amount of deteriorated banknotes, a tape-and-wind type in which stacking and separation are not performed is more advantageous.

Fig. 45 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote storing operation in direct deposit using a deposit section in the banknote handling device of embodiment 3. In the deposit rejected banknote storing operation at the time of the deposit operation by the deposit unit 120, in the case of "F: the storage destination of the deposit rejected returned banknotes of embodiment 1 described above in the banknote deposit operation "using the deposit unit 120 is replaced with the escrow unit 80 from the storage unit 70. The switching gate 55 connects the transport path 50b and the transport path 80a, and the rotary drum 81 rotates in the direction (clockwise in the figure) of winding up the guide belt 83 so that the traveling speed of the guide belt 83 is substantially the same as the entering speed of the banknotes, and winds up the deposit rejected banknotes.

Fig. 46 is an explanatory diagram of a rejected banknote returning operation in the direct deposit using the deposit section in the banknote handling device of embodiment 3. The feed reject banknote return operation after the feed operation is considered to be "F: in the banknote deposit operation using the deposit unit 120 ", the storage unit for banknotes fed out in embodiment 1 described above may be replaced with the escrow unit 80 from the storage unit 70. After the switching of the routing gate 55 to connect the transport path 80a and the transport path 50b, the rotary drum 81 is reversed (counterclockwise in the drawing) to feed out the rejected banknotes, and the banknotes are transported in the order of the transport paths 80a, 50b, 50a, 10a, 30a, 10d, and 10c and transported to the banknote stacking unit 20c of the deposit and withdrawal unit 20. The banknote judged to be acceptable by the recognition unit 30 passes through the banknote recognition unit described in "F: the banknote deposit operation by the deposit unit 120 "is controlled in the same manner as in embodiment 1 described above, and is conveyed to the escrow unit 40.

Fig. 47 is an explanatory diagram of a deposit storing process operation using a deposit section in the banknote handling apparatus according to embodiment 3. In the case of "H: in the banknote deposit operation using the deposit and withdrawal unit "in the deposit and storage operation of embodiment 1 described above, the receivable banknotes can be newly selected as the storage destinations of the banknotes, and the storage unit 70 can be newly selected. When the banknotes are stored in the storage unit 70, the gate 54 is switched so that the transport path 50b is connected to the transport path 70a, and the banknotes are transported to the storage unit 70 through the transport paths 50a, 50b, and 70 a.

According to embodiments 1 to 3 described above, it is possible to realize deposit matching with the demand of the user who wants to perform deposit processing for a large number of banknotes quickly, and it is also possible to shorten the time required for deposit.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are also included. For example, the above-described embodiments are described in detail to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and are not limited to having all the structures described. In addition, as long as there is no contradiction, it is also possible to replace a part of the structure of one embodiment with the structure of another embodiment, or to add the structure of one embodiment to the structure of another embodiment. Further, some of the structures of the embodiments can be added, deleted, replaced, integrated, and divided. Further, the respective processes shown in the embodiments may be appropriately distributed or integrated based on the process efficiency or the installation efficiency.

Claims (22)

1. A paper sheet handling apparatus comprising:

a money receiving unit that receives money received from a substantially horizontally disposed banknote;

a deposit and withdrawal unit which accepts the deposit of banknotes that are placed substantially upright, and which delivers the banknotes that are placed substantially upright;

a recognition unit which recognizes the paper money;

a temporary holding unit that temporarily stores the banknotes that are dispensed from the deposit and withdrawal unit and that are recognized as being acceptable by the recognition unit;

a plurality of storage sections for storing banknotes;

a conveyance path that is connected to the deposit and withdrawal unit, the escrow unit, and the plurality of storage units via the recognition unit, and that conveys banknotes in both directions;

a sub-conveyance path connecting the deposit unit and the conveyance path; and

a detection unit that detects a conveyance state of the banknotes conveyed in the conveyance path and the sub-conveyance path,

the banknote conveying apparatus is configured to convey the banknote, the banknote being detected as being conveyed abnormally by the detection unit that detects the conveyance state of the banknote conveyed through the sub-conveyance path, from the deposit and withdrawal unit without waiting for a result of the recognition by the recognition unit.

2. The paper sheet handling device according to claim 1,

the joint portion between the transport path and the sub-transport path is located between the recognition portion and the temporary storage portion.

3. The paper sheet handling device according to claim 1,

the deposit unit and the withdrawal unit are disposed in a position near the user side of the paper sheet handling apparatus where the user can place the banknotes removed from the deposit unit again in the deposit unit.

4. The paper sheet handling apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:

a control unit for controlling conveyance of the banknotes in the conveyance path and the sub-conveyance path,

the control unit performs the transport control such that:

a step of feeding rejected banknotes, which are recognized as being unable to be accepted by the recognition unit, out of banknotes deposited from either the depositing unit or the depositing and dispensing unit, to the depositing and dispensing unit,

the banknotes fed out from the storage unit are recognized by the recognition unit and then fed out to the deposit and withdrawal unit.

5. The paper sheet handling device according to claim 4,

the control unit stores rejected banknotes recognized as unacceptable by the recognition unit from among banknotes deposited from any one of the depositing unit and the depositing and dispensing unit into one of the plurality of storage units before the banknotes are fed to the depositing and dispensing unit, and when the banknotes fed from the one storage unit are recognized again by the recognition unit, the banknotes are fed to the depositing and dispensing unit if the banknotes are recognized as unacceptable rejected banknotes, and the banknotes are fed to the escrow unit if the banknotes are recognized as acceptable.

6. The paper sheet handling apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, comprising:

a safe box for covering the paper sheet processing device,

the safe has:

a hole through which the secondary transport path passes;

the deposit unit disposed outside the safe; and

and the deposit and withdrawal unit is disposed inside the safe.

7. The paper sheet handling device of claim 6, wherein,

the deposit unit and the sub-conveyance path are attachable to and detachable from the safe,

the banknote deposit and withdrawal unit can be used to deposit and deliver banknotes even in a state where the deposit and withdrawal unit is detached from the safe together with the sub transport path.

8. The paper sheet handling device of claim 4 or 5,

the apparatus case accommodating the paper sheet handling apparatus has an opening/closing shutter that covers the deposit and withdrawal unit and the deposit and withdrawal unit.

9. The paper sheet handling apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, comprising:

and a second temporary holding section for storing rejected banknotes that are determined by the recognition section to be unacceptable.

10. The paper sheet handling device of claim 4 or 5,

one of the plurality of storage units is set as a second temporary holding unit for storing rejected banknotes determined by the recognition unit to be not acceptable.

11. The paper sheet handling device of claim 10,

the one storage unit is partitioned vertically into spaces, one of the spaces is the second escrow unit, and the other space is a collection box for collecting the banknotes identified by the identification unit as the non-circulating rejected and collected banknotes unsuitable for dispensing.

12. The paper sheet handling device of claim 9,

the control unit performs:

a first money receiving process of conveying the banknotes, the banknotes having received the money from the money receiving and dispensing unit, to the escrow unit via the conveyance path and the recognition unit, then sending the banknotes from the escrow unit to the storage unit via the conveyance path and the recognition unit; and

and a second money deposit process of conveying the banknotes, the money of which is accepted from the money deposit unit, to the storage unit via the sub conveyance path, the conveyance path, and the recognition unit.

13. The paper sheet handling device of claim 12,

at the time of the second deposit process,

the rejected banknotes judged by the detection unit to be unacceptable are fed to the deposit and withdrawal unit before passing through the recognition unit.

14. The paper sheet handling device of claim 12,

at the time of the second deposit process,

the rejected banknotes judged by the recognition unit to be not receivable are temporarily stored in one of the storage units, and then the rejected banknotes are fed out from the one storage unit to the deposit and withdrawal unit.

15. The paper sheet handling device of claim 12,

the reject banknotes judged by the discriminating unit to be not receivable are temporarily stored in the second escrow unit, and then the reject banknotes are fed out from the second escrow unit and fed to the deposit and withdrawal unit.

16. The paper sheet handling device of claim 12,

when the reject banknotes fed out to the deposit and withdrawal unit are again set in the deposit and withdrawal unit, the second deposit process is performed on the reject banknotes.

17. The paper sheet handling device of claim 12,

when depositing banknotes, the user can select in advance which of the first deposit process performed by placing banknotes in the deposit and withdrawal unit and the second deposit process performed by placing banknotes in the deposit and withdrawal unit is to be performed.

18. The paper sheet handling device of claim 12,

the deposit transaction is performed by using the deposit unit in a large deposit transaction in which a predetermined number or more of banknotes are deposited, and the deposit transaction is performed by using the deposit and withdrawal unit in a small deposit transaction in which a predetermined number or less of banknotes are deposited.

19. The paper sheet handling device of claim 12,

the deposit transaction is performed using the deposit unit in a first time period, and the deposit transaction is performed using the deposit and withdrawal unit in a second time period different from the first time period.

20. The paper sheet handling device according to claim 12, comprising:

a first shutter plate covering the deposit and withdrawal unit; and

a second shutter covering the deposit section,

in the first deposit process of depositing from the deposit and withdrawal unit, the second shutter is closed and the first shutter is opened,

when the second deposit process of depositing is performed from the deposit section, the second shutter is opened and the first shutter is closed.

21. The paper sheet handling device of claim 20,

at the time of the second deposit process,

when the rejected banknotes judged as being unacceptable by the detection unit or the recognition unit are detected, the first shutter is opened, the rejected banknotes are sent to the deposit and withdrawal unit, and then the second deposit processing is performed on the rejected banknotes deposited from the deposit unit.

22. The paper sheet handling device of claim 21,

when the first shutter is opened, the deposit and withdrawal unit is half-opened with a part of the deposit and withdrawal unit covered.

Images