HK1033703B - Device for sorting sheet-like recording media - Google Patents

Description

Sorting device for sheet-like data carriers

Technical Field

The invention relates to a sorting device for sheet-like data carriers, in particular banknotes.

Background

DE-a 3333365 discloses a sorting apparatus with a banknote inlet opening facing the operator and into which rectangular banknotes can be inserted, with the long edges of the banknotes facing the operator and extending parallel to the front panel of the apparatus. Banknotes from the input port are sorted and then fed through the transport system into a testing device which determines their denomination and banknote status, among other things. According to the test, each banknote is fed into a corresponding output port. The input and output ports of the known device are arranged one below the other and closely spaced. The known sorting apparatus shows a good ergonomic design in this respect, since this arrangement and the direction of the banknotes in the inlet and outlet are such that the long sides are parallel to the front panel of the apparatus, allowing the operator to easily take the banknotes.

In the known apparatus, banknotes are continuously transported in the short-side direction (i.e. transverse direction) from the input opening to the output opening. Therefore, the sorting apparatus must have a large volume and the testing device is cumbersome. This is because for evaluation of large area notes or intelligence, scanning a note in the transverse direction requires many more measurement tracks than testing a note in the long side direction (i.e., the longitudinal direction). For example, testing the security thread longitudinally or other elements such as adhesive strips across the banknote may take less effort.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention is therefore based on the problem of proposing a device of the type which not only has a compact structure and an optimal ergonomic design, but also allows the use of compact and cost-effective test means.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a sorting apparatus for sheet-like data carriers having long sides and short sides, comprising: an input port for receiving a data carrier; a sorting device associated with the input port; a set of delivery systems; a test device integrated into the transport system; and at least one output port for storing the data carrier according to the test result. The input and output openings are designed and oriented with respect to the front panel of the device such that the long sides of the data carriers face the operator, and the structure of the sorting device and the transport system is such that the data carriers are guided through the testing device in the direction of their long sides, wherein a longitudinal/transverse transport device is provided after the testing device in the transport direction for feeding the data carriers into the output openings in the direction of the short sides in dependence on the test results.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention also provides a method of sorting sheet-like data carriers having long and short sides, comprising the steps of: inserting a data carrier into an input opening with its long side facing the operator and extending parallel to the front panel of the sorting device, sorting the data carrier from the input opening and transferring it to a transport system, then feeding it in the direction of the long side into a testing device, testing the data carrier, transferring the data carrier to a longitudinal/transverse transport device and then further down in the direction of the short side, and depositing the data carrier in at least one output opening with its long side facing the operator and extending parallel to the front panel of the sorting device.

The inventive solution is characterized in that the banknotes face the operator on both the inlet and outlet with a long side, but are sorted in the direction of their long side and are also transported through the testing device in this direction. After testing, the banknotes are guided to a longitudinal/transverse transport device to be fed in their short-side direction to the output opening.

The lateral removal of the banknotes with the longitudinal/lateral transport means further offers the possibility of alignment along the long and short edges of the stack at the output opening, thus ensuring a flush edge stacking along the long and short edges.

Since the banknotes face the operator with a long side at the input and output ports, the respective stack can be easily and reliably taken. And the paper money test can be completed by the test device which saves cost and has compact structure.

The invention thus allows a sorting apparatus not only to be of particularly good ergonomic design but also allows compact, cost-effective components to be used, particularly during testing.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the input and output ports are arranged close to each other within reach and access of the operator, making the handling of the sorting apparatus most easy. Moreover, the ports are easy to view.

In order to allow the separation of banknotes suspected of being counterfeit or unidentifiable as early as possible as detected by the testing device, a further advantageous embodiment of the invention provides a separate output opening between the testing device and the longitudinal/transverse transport device. Since the banknotes collected in this port need to be re-checked manually by the operator, it is particularly advantageous from an ergonomic point of view that this output port is also arranged next to the input port and is likewise easy to view.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the one or more outlets and the longitudinal/transverse transport device are part of a modular construction unit. This output module is equipped with a standard interface for receiving and delivering longitudinally transported banknotes. By means of the longitudinal/transverse transport device integrated into the output module, the banknotes can be transferred out of the longitudinal transport path and fed in the short-edge direction into the output opening, if required. Suitable electronic and mechanical interfaces thus enable the output module to be connected in a simple manner to a base module comprising the input opening, a picking device, a part of the transport system, the testing device and optionally an output opening for the rejected banknotes. Depending on the requirements and use of the sorting device, multiple output modules may also be interconnected to achieve different configurations of the overall system.

Drawings

Further advantageous features of the invention, as well as the structure and function of the invention, are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment;

fig. 2 shows a so-called basic module;

FIG. 3 shows an output module;

FIG. 4 illustrates the mating of two output modules; and

fig. 5 shows a second embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

The present invention will be explained below with an example of a paper money sorting apparatus; the same reference numerals indicate the same or similar parts.

Fig. 1 shows a front and side view of a sorting apparatus in the form of a desktop. The figure shows only the essential parts for understanding the invention, which are shown in a very schematic form. The front panel 1 of the apparatus is inclined at an angle of about 70 to the horizontal and has an input port 2 into which a stack of banknotes 3 can be inserted. The tilt angle is designed relative to the operator so that the upper end of the front panel extends away from the operator. The banknotes are inserted into the input port 2 with their long sides facing the operator and parallel to the front panel. Banknotes from the input port are sorted along their long side by a suitable sorting device 19 and are sent to the underlying transport system 4. The conveyor system 4 extends along a substantially U-shaped path in the region of the lower, lateral and upper limiting walls of the housing. This allows a sufficiently long transport path to be accommodated in a small space. First, this length is necessary to accommodate the appropriate number of sensors in the test device, and second, the travel path or travel time is required to evaluate the test signal and activate the appropriate control elements. The path provided by the transport system 4 makes it easily accessible, in particular in the region of the test device 6. The banknotes are then conveyed through the testing device 6 in order to check the optional criteria of the banknotes. According to this test, the banknotes are then fed either into the store 10 by means of a so-called spiral stacker 9 or into the output ports 12 to 15 by means of the longitudinal/transverse transport device 7. The depository 10 arranged in the proximity of the input port will be used to deposit banknotes that cannot be identified or are suspected of being counterfeit, which must be checked by the operator. The output ports 12 to 15 are also arranged in the input port access area within reach of the operator. Banknotes in the input port, output port and depository 10 for banknotes that cannot be identified or are suspected of being counterfeit are faced with their long sides to the operator so that they can be easily and reliably taken by the operator.

Since the inlet opening 2 is combined laterally with the outlet openings 12 to 15 and the reservoir 10 is arranged above the inlet opening 2, there is no risk of confusion between the reservoir 10 and the outlet openings 12 to 15, despite the close arrangement of the openings.

This apparatus works specifically as follows. The banknotes 3 deposited in the infeed opening 2 against the stop surface 5 are fed successively one after the other by the sorting device 19 into the transport system 4. The bottom of the input port is inclined downward by about 20 deg. with respect to the left and rear faces so that both the long and short sides of the note can be aligned. The transport system 4 transports the banknotes in the longitudinal direction, guiding them through a testing device 6 which performs an inspection with appropriate sensors while transporting them. The output signal of the sensor is fed to a control device not shown in the figure. The control device determines which output opening each banknote should be stored in.

A plurality of banknotes that are not identifiable and suspected of being counterfeit are removed by the switch 8 and transferred out of the transport system 4 and then into the spiral stacker 9. The latter are drum and sector containers and are driven in rotation in the direction indicated by the arrow. The banknotes that enter the stacker are lowered there and then placed in the depository 10 where the rejected banknotes are deposited. The operator can take the note there to review.

Other banknotes are fed into the longitudinal/transverse transport device 7, where they are changed by a corresponding mechanism in the original direction of movement of the banknotes along the long edges to the direction of movement along the short edges, if they are to be deposited at the output ports 12-15. They are then passed into a transport system 11 which feeds the banknotes into one of the outlets 12 to 15 according to selected sorting criteria. For this purpose, the banknotes are transferred out by suitable switches (not shown) and deposited by a stacker (also not shown). The stacker differs from the stacker 9 described above only in that the banknotes are fed in the short-side direction, which allows the stacker to have a much smaller diameter. But also allows the outlets 12 to 15 to be lined up in a particularly compact form. Because the front panel is inclined, the outlets are arranged in a stepped fashion and are thus particularly easy to operate.

The sequence of sheets from the input port remains unchanged as the banknotes are deposited in the depository 10. This allows the use of so-called separator cards as an intermediate layer between the individual processing units.

If a malfunction results in a failure of the control device, for example, it is no longer guaranteed that the banknotes can be correctly deposited at the correct output opening, at which point the banknotes are fed through the output opening 17 to the emergency output opening 18. This storage is effected automatically if there is no lateral movement in the direction of the transverse conveyor belt 11.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the device of the invention is of modular design and consists of a base module 20 (fig. 2) and at least one output module 25 (fig. 3). As explained above, the base module 20 comprises the input 2 with the picking device 19, the transport system 4, the testing device 6, the switch 8, the spiral stacker 9 with the associated depository 10 for depositing rejected banknotes, and a display 21 for displaying operating conditions, information, etc. for the operator. The base module 20 may also optionally comprise control means and a data storage unit and input means for inputting data and/or control commands. And the base module 20 has an output 22 for connection to further modules.

An output module 25 as shown in fig. 3 may be connected to the base module such that the output 22 of the base module 20 is connected to the input 16 of the stacker module 25. This obviously also creates an electrical connection between the control means and the control elements of the output module 25. The output module 25 comprises all the necessary drive and adjustment devices for the longitudinal/transverse conveyor 7, the stacker and the associated switches. Further output modules of identical construction or other output modules with suitable interfaces can be connected via the output 17. At the end of the complete system an emergency outlet 18 is always provided at the output 17 of the last module connected to the base module 20.

Fig. 4 shows the cooperation of the output module 25 with another module of identical construction. The banknotes pass through the input 16 of the output module 25 to the longitudinal/transverse transport device 7. If a banknote is to be deposited at one of the output openings 12 to 15, lateral removal is initiated in the longitudinal/lateral transport device and the banknote is fed into one of the output openings 12 to 15 by the transport system 11. If a banknote is to be deposited in another output port, it is transported further without lateral movement and is transferred via the output 17 of the output module 25 to the input 16 'of the next module 25'. In the output module 25 ', either the lateral removal of the banknotes into the output openings 12' to 15 'is effected at that time, or the banknotes are transported further via the output 17'.

Fig. 5 shows a possible configuration of the banknote sorting device, with a total of eight output openings 12 to 15 and 12 'to 15'. This arrangement is suitable, for example, for a sorting mode whereby banknotes of different denominations and states are stored in different output ports.

The arrangement shown in fig. 5 is distinguished by a compact design, despite its large number of outlets. In this configuration the input ports 2, the depositories 10 for banknotes to be reinspected and the other output ports in the output modules 25 and 25' are also arranged in the vicinity of each other so as to be within reach of the operator. Banknotes are arranged with long edges facing the operator and parallel to the front panel of the apparatus in all operator accessible input and output ports. This means that the machine is very convenient to operate even if it is equipped with a large number of outlets.

Claims (17)

1. A sorting device for sheet-like data carriers with long sides and short sides, comprising:

an input opening (2) for receiving a data carrier (3);

a sorting device (19) associated with the input port;

a set of delivery systems (4);

a testing device (6) integrated into the transport system; and

at least one output (12-15) for storing a data carrier according to the test result,

characterized in that the input opening (2) and the output opening (12-15) are designed and oriented with respect to the front panel (1) of the device such that the long sides of the data carriers (3) face the operator, and the picking device (19) and the transport system (4) are constructed such that the data carriers are guided through the testing device (6) in the direction of their long sides, wherein a longitudinal/transverse transport device (7) is arranged after the testing device in the transport direction for feeding the data carriers into the output opening in the direction of the short sides depending on the test result.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the inlet (2) and the outlet (12-15) are located close to each other and within reach of the operator.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a switch (8) is provided between the testing means (6) and the longitudinal/transverse means (7) for transferring data carriers which are not identifiable and/or are suspected of being counterfeit to the depository (10).

4. A device according to claim 3, characterized in that the store (10) and the input port (2) are arranged within reach of an operator.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the conveyor system (4) extends along a substantially U-shaped path, starting from the inlet opening (2), through the testing device (6) and then to the longitudinal/transverse conveyor device (7).

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the U-shaped path extends within a profile-limiting region of the apparatus.

7. A device as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the input opening (2), the picking device (19), the transport system (4), the testing device (6) and the depository (10) for storing data carriers which are unidentifiable and/or suspected of being counterfeit are integral parts of the base module (20).

8. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the longitudinal/transverse transport means (7) and the output openings (12-15) are part of an output module (25) of modular construction.

9. Device as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that the output module (25) is equipped with standard inputs and outputs (16, 17) for longitudinal transport of the data carrier (3).

10. A device as claimed in claim 9, characterized in that the longitudinal/transverse transport means (7) transfer the data carrier out of the transport system in dependence on the test result.

11. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the outlets (12-15) are arranged one above the other.

12. A device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that one or more outlet openings (12-15) are arranged below the longitudinal/transverse transport means (7) in the transport direction for receiving data carriers (3) transported in the short-side direction.

13. Device according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the outlets (12-15) are arranged in the form of steps.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, characterized in that the angle of inclination of the front panel (1) with respect to the horizontal is about 70 °.

15. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the data carrier (3) is a rectangular banknote.

16. A method of sorting sheet-like data carriers having long and short sides, comprising the steps of:

inserting the data carrier into an input opening with its long side facing the operator and extending parallel to the front panel of the sorting device,

the data carriers from the input opening are sorted and transferred to the transport system and are then fed in the longitudinal direction to a test device for testing the data carriers,

the data carrier is transferred to the longitudinal/transverse transport device and then transported further down in the direction of the short side and stored in at least one output opening with its long side facing the operator and extending parallel to the front panel of the sorting apparatus.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the data carrier is a rectangular banknote.