JPH0325830B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a card processing device having a compact and simple card return mechanism.

[Prior art]

In most conventional devices of this type, the card insertion slot and the card return slot are the same slot. It is like a bank card or credit card, and if the card is verified, the service will be provided.
When he finished, he returned it from the mouth he inserted it into. On the other hand, magnetic tickets and commuter passes have separate insertion slots and return slots, but these slots are installed at both ends of the ticket gate and correspond to the ticket gate processing by users, and if the card is not ejected from the return slot, A caretaker standing by the device maintained it and took out the card. In this way, there was a need for maintenance personnel to be on standby at all times. Further, FIG. 1 shows a card public telephone as an example in which a card insertion slot and a card return slot are configured separately. The card 3 inserted through the card insertion slot 2 provided at the upper front of the card public telephone 1 is taken into the card public telephone 1 and processed along the card transport path 5 by the card transport mechanism 4. , the card is discharged from the card return slot 6 located at the lower front.
The reason why the card opening is separated into upper and lower parts is that even if the value equivalent to the number of degrees written on card 3 is lost during use, if an additional card is inserted into card slot 2, it will be automatically loaded. This is because both the slots are separated to ensure continuity of service, and cards that have lost their value can be stored in the storage box 7 at the bottom of the phone or returned to the return slot 6. However, in such a card processing device, since both openings are separated vertically, there are drawbacks such as forgetting to take out the return card or incorrectly inserting the card from the return opening 6. Figure 2 shows an example in which both mouths are brought close together. In this configuration, the card transport path cannot be made unidirectional, and there are locations where the card take-in transport path 8, the card return transport path 9, and the card transport path 5 intersect. A card 3 inserted from the card insertion slot 2 is prevented from being inserted beyond a certain length by a shutter 10. When insertion is detected, drive solenoid 1
1 is sucked, a take-in roller 12 connected to the shutter 10 presses the card against a conveyance roller 14 and applies a conveyance force, and a card take-in mechanism 13 composed of these takes in the card 3. When returning the card after processing, a guide valve 15 is installed at the intersection of the three transport paths 5, 8, and 9 to guide the card 3 to the card return transport path 9. In this way, each conveyance path and the return guide valve 15 are constructed as separate parts, and the device has also become larger and has a greater number of components. The card to be returned is the guide valve 15.
The card is discharged from the card return conveyance path 9 to the card return port 6 along the card return path 9. Here, the guide valve 15 is configured to normally close the return conveyance path 9 by biasing a spring.
When taking in a card, the card conveying force is made larger than the spring force, and the leading end of the card 3 presses down the guide valve 15 to be conveyed. In this configuration, card return slot 6
Therefore, if the card is not returned, it is impossible to eject it from the card insertion slot 2, resulting in a high down rate (low operating rate) of the device.

[Summary of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of these points, and includes a substantially triangular member that serves as a guide for the card take-in and return transport paths, and that also enables switching between the two transport paths. Due to its extremely simple configuration, which is placed in a position surrounded by the card return transport path and the card processing transport path, card returns can also be performed from the card insertion slot, increasing the operating rate of the device and reducing the number of parts, making it inexpensive. This provides a compact card processing device. Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

〔Example〕

FIG. 3 is a basic configuration block diagram of the device of the present invention, in which 20 is a drive source such as a motor, 21 is a card information input/output unit, 22 is a card return mechanism, and 23 is a basic configuration block diagram of the device of the present invention.
2 is a detector, 24 is a control circuit, and 25 is a substantially triangular switching member. Note that other mechanical parts are the same as the conventional mechanical parts shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and therefore are designated by the same reference numerals.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the configuration of the card processing device according to the present invention, and FIGS. 5a and 5b are plan views of the card receiving and returning unit shown in FIG. 4, respectively.

The card take-in conveyance path 8 and the card return conveyance path 9 are separated by a substantially triangular switching member 25, and communicate with the card processing conveyance path 5 at the intersection thereof. The card take-in mechanism 13 includes a take-in roller 12a arranged in the card take-in conveyance path 8, a driving solenoid 11 that moves the take-in roller 12a up and down, and a take-in lever 30 and a lever 31 that connect them. It consists of a link mechanism (some configurations are unnecessary due to the stroke force of the solenoid 11) and a take-in roller 12b that is located at a position facing the take-in roller 12a and applies a take-in force. In this embodiment, a shutter 10 is provided to prevent the card 3 from being inserted beyond a certain level to prevent foreign matter from entering the device. Pass through the bottom. The card transport mechanism 4
A plurality of conveyance pulleys 32a, 32b, driven pulleys 33a, 33b, a conveyance belt 34, a driven belt 35, a motor 20, a deceleration pulley 3, which face each other with the card processing conveyance path 5 interposed therebetween.
6. It is composed of tension pulleys 37a, 37b, a drive belt 38, a motor shaft pulley 39, etc., and transports the card 3 back and forth by transmitting the driving force from the motor 20. The card return mechanism 22 includes a conveyance pulley 32c, a return roller 40, the conveyance belt 34, a card return port guide 41, etc. across the card return conveyance path 9, and the return conveyance force is driven by the conveyance belt 34. transport pulleys 32a, 32
c, a driven pulley 33a facing each other, and a return roller 40, which are clamped thereon.

Note that 42 is a punch mechanism that visually displays the card record information. 43 is an axis of the substantially triangular switching member 25, 44 is a gear group, 45 is a touch roller, and 46 is an axis of the take-in lever 30.

Hereinafter, an example will be explained in which the magnetic card 3 is used as a card and applied to a public telephone.
FIGS. 6a, b, c, d, e, f, and g show the operation of the substantially triangular switching member, which is the main component of the present invention, corresponding to each card processing. FIG. 6a shows the card inserted. Card insertion slot 2
When the magnetic card 3 is inserted further, the shutter 10 prevents further insertion. In this state, the substantially triangular switching member 25 moves around the shaft 43 with a spring force so that the tip of the switching member 25 on the opposite side to the shaft 43 moves the card in the card processing conveyance path 5 to the card return slot 6.
It is biased counterclockwise so as to lead to. When the detectors 23a and 23b detect the card insertion, the control circuit 24 (FIG. 3) uses the detection signal to determine whether the card 3 has the correct shape, and if it is correct, takes it in. FIG. 6b shows the loading state. In the taking-in process, the taking-in lever 30 rotates counterclockwise around the shaft 46 via the link mechanism due to the suction operation of the drive solenoid 11, the taking-in roller 12a pushes down the card 3, and the shutter 10
Place the tip of card 3 at the bottom of the card. This series of processing is performed by the card receiving mechanism 13. At this time, the pressing force applied to the solenoid 11 by the suction force exceeds the spring force urging the substantially triangular switching member 25,
The lower surface of the card 3 pushes down the switching member 25 and is held between the take-in rollers 12a and 12b. Switching member 2
The inner end of the card 5 is lowered by rotation in a clockwise direction about the shaft 43, thereby communicating the card taking-in conveying path 8 with the card processing conveying path 5. On the other hand, this action causes
Communication between the card processing conveyance path 5 and the card return conveyance path 9 is cut off. The motor 20 is rotated in the card receiving direction, that is, clockwise, and the transport pulley 32c is rotated via the driving force transmission mechanism of the card transport mechanism 4. This driving force is transmitted through the gear group 44 to the take-in pulley 12b fitted on the same gear shaft, and the card 3 is taken into the device while being held between both the take-in pulleys 12a and 12b. In this way, during the loading process, the top surface of the switching member 25 also serves as a guide surface as a card loading and conveying path.

FIG. 6c shows the state of card transport processing. After the card import process, in principle, the switching member 25
When the rear edge of card 3 passes over the top surface of card 3,
When the tip of the solenoid 11 is detected as passing through the detector 23d, the suction of the solenoid 11 is stopped and restored by a control signal from the control circuit 24. As a result, the card loading mechanism 13 such as the switching member 25 is restored to the same state as before loading. Motor rotation shaft 39
and a reduction pulley 36 for decelerating the rotation speed to a predetermined speed.
is interlocked with a drive belt 38, and the belt 38 is tensioned at a constant tension by a tension pulley 37b. The driving force from the motor 20 is transmitted to the card 3 via the card transport mechanism 4 while being controlled at a constant transport speed, and is transferred to the card transport path 5.
The card 3 is transported back and forth along. Note that when the card 3 is fed into the card processing conveyance path 5 and the leading edge of the card is detected by the detector 23c, the detector 23a,
The control circuit 24 determines the length of the card 3 based on the logic with the detection signal from the card 23b, and if it is not a regular card, the card is sent backwards and ejected from the card insertion slot 2. If the card is determined to be a regular card, the magnetic head 21 starts reading processing. The card 3 is read and written while being pressed against the magnetic head 21 by a touch roller 45 disposed at a position facing the magnetic head 21. If it is determined that there is an error in the read information, the card 3 is ejected (the ejection method will be described later). If it is normal, it is controlled to be able to talk.
When the call ends, record the remaining power on card 3,
After confirmation, a hole is punched by the punching mechanism 42 at a position corresponding to the approximate number of remaining power printed on the card 3 as a rough indication of the remaining power. This punching process is performed only when the applicable conditions are met. After the perforation process, the card is returned through the card return slot 6.

FIG. 6d shows a state in which the card return process is in progress. When the card 3 is transported backwards by the card transport mechanism 4, the rear end of the card 3 collides with the inner end of the switching member 25, and the switching member 25 serves as a guide to transport the card 3 along the card return transport path 9. fulfill. The card 3 is conveyed while being held between the conveyance pulley 32a and the driven pulley 33a, and sent between the conveyance pulley 32c and the return roller 40. These card return mechanisms 22 guide the card to the card return slot 6 along the card return slot guide 41. FIG. 6e is a diagram of the card returned state. Since the conveyance pulley 32c and the return roller 40 are arranged with their axes shifted in the direction of the card return conveyance path 9, they are held between them via the conveyance belt 34, and the insertion tip of the card 3 is conveyed. When the card 3 is inserted, the rear end of the card 3 protrudes from the card return slot 6 along the card return slot guide 41, and after passing through, the insertion tip of the card 3 comes off as shown in the figure, and the card 3 is inserted into the card return slot. It is falling on 41. In this state, card 3
is separated from the card transport force and remains stationary.
It will remain in this state until removed. Furthermore, if you try to push the card 3 in this state, that is, if you try to insert the card 3 from the return slot 6, the inner part of the card return slot guide 41 becomes concave and has a structure that prevents it from entering the card return transport path 9. It is not possible to insert it because it is worn out.

FIG. 6f shows the state at the time of processing to take in the second card. If the card in use reaches zero, the call will be forcibly disconnected, but if an additional card is inserted, a function is required to automatically continue the call. The device of the present invention makes this possible.
As described in the explanation of FIG. 6e, when the used card 3a is recorded and punched and returned, and the detector 23e detects ejection, control is performed by combining the detection signal at that time and the insertion detection signal of the additional card 3b. The circuit 24 instructs the process of importing the additional card 3b. Thereafter, the processing described in FIGS. 6b and 6c will be performed, so a description thereof will be omitted here. This allows continuous calls. This figure shows the state in which the image is being imported.

FIG. 6g is a diagram showing the returned state when the card is returned from the card insertion slot. As described above, the substantially triangular switching member 25 also serves as a conveyance path guide for both the card take-in conveyance path 8 and the card return conveyance path 9, and also controls the card pressing force of the card take-in mechanism 13 when taking in a card. The switching member 25 is also pushed down, and the card 3 is taken into the device by communicating the card taking-in conveyance path 8 and the card processing conveyance path 5, but after that, the switching member 25 is restored by the spring force, and the card taking-in conveyance path 8 is connected to the card processing conveyance path 5. While blocking the passage 8, the card return conveyance passage 9 leading to the card return port 6 and the card processing conveyance passage 5 are communicated with each other.

At this time, for example, by rotating the spindle 43 using a rotary solenoid (not shown) and establishing communication between the card processing conveyance path 5 and the card take-in conveyance path 8 through the switching member 25, the card 3 can be returned. The structure allows processing to be returned not only from the card return slot 6 but also from the card insertion slot 2.

This configuration has the advantage that it is easy to assemble, there is no need to prepare each transport path member and the switching member 25 separately, the number of parts is reduced, the mounting efficiency is increased, and the device is smaller. It is advantageous for It also brings about a reduction in price. Also,
Since the switching member 25 can be controlled as a selector,
Even if it becomes impossible to eject the card from the card return slot 6, it can be ejected from the card insertion slot 2, increasing the operating rate of the device.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, the card processing device according to the present invention has a card take-in transport path, a card return transport path, and a card return transport path within the device between the card insertion slot and the card return slot.
A substantially triangular member is disposed at a position surrounded by the card processing and transportation path, and this allows communication with the card processing and transportation path to be switched, and also to guide the card take-in and return transportation path. Since the structure is made to serve as both a simple structure and there is no need to provide a conveyance path member, the number of parts is reduced, the cost is reduced, and the size can be reduced.

Furthermore, since cards can be returned from the card insertion slot, the operating rate of the device is increased.

Note that the present invention is applicable not only to magnetic card processing devices but also to all card processing devices such as paper and plastic cards.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a conventional card processing device for a card public telephone, Fig. 2 is a diagram of a conventional take-in/return mechanism, Fig. 3 is a basic block diagram of the device of the present invention, and Fig. 4 is a block diagram of the basic structure of the device of the present invention. A configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the device of the present invention, FIGS. 5a and 5b are plan views of the card receiving/returning section of FIG. 4, respectively, and FIGS. 6a to 6g constitute the main components of the present invention. FIG. 3 is an operational diagram of a substantially triangular switching member. 1...Card public telephone, 2...Card insertion slot, 3...Card, 4...Card transport mechanism, 5...
...Card processing conveyance path, 6...Card return port, 8...
...Card take-in conveyance path, 9...Card return conveyance path,
10... Shutter, 13... Card import mechanism, 2
0... Drive source, 21... Card information input/output section, 2
2... Card return mechanism, 23... Detector, 24...
...Control circuit, 25...Substantially triangular switching member.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A card insertion slot, a card intake transport path whose one end communicates with the card insertion slot and whose other end communicates with a card processing transport path, and a card intake transport path from the card insertion slot to the card processing transport path. a card taking-in mechanism that takes in a card inserted therein and guides it to the card processing conveyance path; a drive source for operating the card taking-in mechanism; and a card taking-in mechanism disposed in the middle of the card taking-in conveyance path A shutter mechanism that is provided to operate in conjunction with each other and prevents insertion of a card beyond a certain length; a card transport mechanism that reciprocates the card along the card processing transport path; and a shutter mechanism that drives the card transport mechanism. a card information input/output unit disposed on the card processing conveyance path for transmitting and receiving information to and from the card; a card return slot provided near the card insertion slot; and a card return slot provided near the card insertion slot; a card return transport path that communicates the processing transport path with the card return port, a card return mechanism that discharges the card guided into the card return transport path from the card return port, and a detector that detects the card position; It consists of a control circuit that controls the processing of these components,
It is located surrounded by the card take-in conveyance path, the card return conveyance path, and the card processing conveyance path, and functions as a conveyance path guide for each of the card take-in conveyance path and the card return conveyance path. A card processing device characterized by having a substantially triangular member that has a function of regulating the card return/transport direction and operates in conjunction with the card take-in mechanism. 2. The card processing device according to claim 1, wherein the substantially triangular member has a selector function for switching card transport to the card insertion slot and the card return slot.