GB2050313A

GB2050313A - Apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper

Info

Publication number: GB2050313A
Application number: GB7941812A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Compagnie Industrielle Radioelectrique SA
Current assignee: Compagnie Industrielle Radioelectrique SA
Priority date: 1979-03-09
Filing date: 1979-12-04
Publication date: 1981-01-07
Also published as: ES486415A1; FR2450770A1; FR2450770B1; IT1126398B; IT7927596A0; DE2951843A1; CH628856A5; JPS55119654A; GB2050313B

Abstract

Apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper comprises an inclined transport track comprising two plates (12, 13) leading down to a store. The sheets of paper (B) enter between the two plates (12, 13) and are driven therebetween the store. A tubular chamber (25) is arranged laterally at the end of the lower plate (13), which chamber (25) is connected to a source of compressed air and is provided with orifices which direct the air at angles towards the bottom of the store which has a step by step movable bottom wall (32). Means (40, 47) for driving the sheets of paper into the store are provided, and, in use, jets of air prevent the front edge of each sheet of paper from rolling up as it enters the store and subsequently forms an air cushion for the entering sheet of paper to attach the sheet to the means for driving it into the store. A feeler (52) controls the step by step descent of the bottom wall (32) of the store as the sheets enter the store. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper The present invention relates to apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper and relates particularly to apparatus for equipping an installation forthe inspection and sorting of new bank notes before they are put into circulation.

In a conventional apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper, the paper is kept in a store situated at the end of an inclined descending transport track including two parallel plates between which the sheets of paper are drawn by driving means and a chamber connected to a source of compressed air.

The chamber is provided with orifices which are directed at an angle towards the bottom of the store to send an inclined current of air in the direction of the bottom of the store. The store comprises a movable bottom and a vertical wall which is used as a stop for the sheets of paper arriving in the store.

Means for the horizontal driving of the sheets of paper into the store and means for the detection of the arrival of the sheets of paper into the store are provided along with means for driving the bottom of the store downwardly step by step, controlled by the said detection means.

Apparatus of the aforementioned type is described in the U.S. Patent Specification No. 3.971.554. In this apparatus the compressed air chamber extends above the store over the greater part of the sheets of paper. The purpose of the air current is to draw the entering sheet in the direction of a driving wheel and to keep the sheet of paper flat on the pile. The chamber is also supported by its own current of air.

The apparatus does not, however, prevent the front edge of a sheet of paper, arriving at an angle in the store, from folding up or rolling up on itself, thus retaining the subsequent sheets and causing a jam which requires the operation of the installation to be stopped. Moreover, the sheet of paper arriving on the preceding sheets slides unsatisfactorily on these sheets especially at its front which becomes stuck against the upper sheet of the pile of the sheets of paper present in the store, owing to the curvature imparted to the sheet of paper and the elasticity of the paper. These phenomena are the more marked the greater the tilting. Whereas the rolling phenomenon takes place more easily with a very flexible sheet of paper, the friction, on the other hand, increases with the stiffness of the sheet of paper and the condition of its surface.A relatively marked tilting enables means for driving of the sheets of paper to be located between the two slanting plates and also makes it possible to reduce the length of the slanting section whilst leaving sufficient space above the store for installing an auxiliary means for driving of the sheets of paper in the store itself.

The object of the invention is to ensure precision in the entry of sheets of paper into such a store.

According to the present invention there is provided apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper comprising a store defined by a bottom wall and a side wall, a a transport track leading to the store and oorrWrsPinir A 1tAwA inolinorQ nnr::zilnl nlitps llri\tinfl means for drivig sheets of paper along the track between the plates, means defining a tubular chamber located at a lower end of the lower of the plates for connection to a source of compressed air and defining orifices orientated towards the bottom of the store at angles which lie between 30" and 60" inclusive, means for driving sheets of paper into the store, the side wall of which store serves as a stop for the sheets of paper arriving in the store, means for detecting the arrival of sheets of paper into the store, and means for the step by step lowering of the bottom wall of the store which means are controlled by the detection means.

In use, jets of air are blown through the orifices which results in four advantageous effects at the input of each sheet of paper into the store, namely: (1) the diffused air prevents the front edge of each sheet of paper entering the store from curling up on itself; (2) the diffused air forms an air cushion between the entering sheet of paper and the bottom of the store or the sheets of paper already present therein thus eliminating any friction; (3) the air cushion delicately attaches the entering sheet of paper against the means for driving the sheet of paper into the store; and when the rear edge of the entering sheet of paper is freed from the inclined transport track, this rear edge turns back under the effect of the elasticity of the paper, very rapidly crossing the jet of air which subsequently acts on the upper face of the sheet of paper in order to hold it and keep it on the other sheets of paper in the store.

This latter effect is interesting because it would be thought that owing to the air blown under the sheet of paper, the latter would have a tendency to float in the store. It is found, however, that the jets of air, which form a fixed cluster of jets about 30 degrees in width which is relatively narrow, create successively a thrust to the top of the store and a thrust towards the bottom of the store without its being necessary to interrupt them orto modify their direction orto put them in action one after the other.

Atubular chamber equipped with twelve holes suitably directed makes it possible to obtain the effect described above.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an elevational view of apparatus according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a cross sectional plan view along the line ll-ll in Figure 1; Figure 3 is an elevational view of a detail of the apparatus; Figure 4 is a partial cross sectional view along the line IV-IV in Figure 1; Figure 5 is an elevatinal view of a detail of the apparatus showing a chamber which diffuses compressed air; and Figure 6 is a cross sectional view along the line VI-VI in Figure 5.

Figure 1 shows apparatus forming a part of an installation for the sorting of banknotes. The end of a transfer table 1 of the installation is shown in Figure 1 together with a last pair of drawing rollers 2 to draw the banknotes onto the table 1, this latter pair being already assembled on a housing 3 which is also the housing for the elements of the apparatus for the introduction of the banknotes into the store.

The housing 3 carries a switch 4which can pivot around a shaft 5 and is used to direct the banknotes either onto a horizontal track 6, or on an inclined descending track 7. The track 6 is formed in a known manner by a table 8 and pairs of driving rollers such as 9, 10 and 11, made from rubber which extend slightly beyond the surface of the table 8. The inclined track 7 consists of two parallel plates 12 and 13 which are 2 mm apart from one another, the lower plate 13 being assembled on a pneumatic actuator 14 which makes it possible to withdraw the plate 13 from the plate 12. Between the plates 12 and 13, the banknotes are drawn by fixed pairs of rollers 15, 16 17, 18, 19 and 20 which respectively extend beyond the internal faces of the plates 12 and 13 respectively.

The pairs of rollers 15, 16 and 17 are drawn by means of a single belt 21 which simultaneously drives the pairs of rollers 9, 10 and 11 by means of pulleys 22 each provided with a groove assembled on the axes of the rollers. The axes of the pairs of rollers 9 and 17 have a second pulley 23 with a groove which is assembled loosely on the axes of the rollers for returning the belt 21 at the time of its second passage around these axes. The lower plate 13 carries on its lower end an auxiliary housing 24 on which is assembled a tubular chamber 25, which is arranged laterally at the end ofthe plate 13. This tubular chamber 25 is shown in detail in Figures 5 and 6. The tube 25 is supplied with 12 radial holes distributed in two grops 26a to 26f, and 26'a to 26'f, arranged symmetrically in relation to the middle of the tube 25.In each grop the holes ae situated on different generatrices, the angle formed between two consecutive holes being 5". The tube 25 can pivot around its axis and it is attached to a small plate which is perpendicular to the tube and provided with a slit in which a locking screw 28 is engaged. The tube 25 is arranged in such a manner as to make possible modification of the direction of the holes 26. If tilting of the plates 12 and 13 is approximately 30 , a favourable tilting of the holes 26a and 26'a would be about 60". The tilting of the other holes will hence be 55 , 50 ,45 ,,40 and 35" respectively. The tube 25 is closed at one of its ends while its other end is connected to a source of compressed air.The axes of the pairs of rollers 15, 16 and 17 are assembled in housings 29,30 and 31 respectively as shown in Figure 2.

The store comprises a moving bottom 32, which forms a reception table, and a fixed vertical wall 33 against which the ends of the banknotes come to a stop. The bottom 32 is kinematically attached with an electromechanical driving device 34 which causes the step by step lowering of the bottom 32 as the banknotes arrive. The fixed wall 33 is assembled on two rods 34 and 35 (Figures 1 and 2) which are able to slide horizontally in a support 36 fixed to the housing 3, a knurled pulley 37 makes it possible to lock the rod 35 in the required position. The wall 33 carries an auxiliary housing 38 on which are assembled a pair of round rotating brushes 39 and 40 with bristles directed radially, these brushes being fixed on a axis 41 assembled on ball bearings. A device for detecting the arrival of the banknotes in the store is also mounted on the wall 33.Mounted on the shaft 41 are two grooved pulleys 42 and 43 which are driven in rotation by two belts 44 and 45 respectively which are themselves driven by two grooved pulleys formed in components 46 and 47 which are mounted on an axle 48. The axle 48 is attached by means of ball bearings on an axuliary housing 49 fixed on the plate 12. The axle 48 is itself rotated by a belt 50 which is driven by a grooved pulley formed on a support 51 of one of the rollers of the pair of rollers 17.

The detection device consists of two feeler arms 52 and 53, which cross the plate 33 in two vertical slits formed therein and which are integral with an shaft 54 which is rotatable mounted in the housing 38 by means of ball bearings. A crank arm 55 is fixed to the shaft 54 and carries a counterweight 56 whose position can be adjusted along the arm 55, a metallic end of the arm 55 cooperating with a magnetic sensor 57, which is connected to the driving device 34.

The switch 4 has three pairs of arms (Figure 2) and is controlled by two electromagnets 58 and 59 which work in conjunction with an oscillating armature 60 which is integral with the shaft 5.

Figure 4 shows in detail the device 14 which carries the moving plate 13. This device consists of a block 61 fixed to the housing 3 with a bore 62 in which a piston 63 made from synthetic rubber or other synthetic material can slide. The piston 63 is attached to a rod 64 fixed to the plate 13. The bore 62 and the fixed piston 63 form a pneumatic actuator which is supplied with compressed air via a hole 65.

The plane 13 is, moreover, attached to two guiding rods 66 and 67 assembled in a sliding manner in the block 61 by means of two pairs of thrust ball bearings 68, 69 and 70,71. When pressure is present in the bore 62, the plate 13 is held in a high position, at 2mm from the plate 12. When the pressure is sufficiently reduced in the bore 62, it is possible to withdraw the plate 13 from the plate 12, for example in orderto detach banknotes which may have remained held in this section.

The operation of the device is as follows: When a banknote B penetrates into the store by being drawn between the moving rollers 15,16 and 17 and the free rollers 18, 19 and 20, the jets of air proceeding from the orifices 26 of the chamber 25 hold up the front part of the banknote, hence preventing it from rolling up upon itself. The banknote continues to be held up bythe air cushion which forms under the banknote as it advances into the store. The banknote is even pushed up towards the top and comes sucessively into contact with the rollers 46 and 47, the belts 44 and 45 and the brushes 39 and 40 which drive it in the direction of the plate 33. When the rear edge of the banknote leaves the lower plate 13 it is sharply folded back into the position B' owing to the elasticity of the banknote and the curvature imposed on the banknote. Once the banknote is in the position B' the air proceeding from the chamber 25 acts on its upper edge and tends to stick it onto the bottom of the storage or onto the banknotes already present in the storage.

The oscillating unit formed by the feeler arms 52 and 53 and by the arm 55 and its counterweight 56 is adjusted in such a manner that a very slight pressure on the feeler arms is sufficient to oscillate the unit.

The counterweight 56 makes it possible to adjust the sensitivity of the device. According to the sensitivity of the device each banknote which enters the storage or the successive entry of a certain number of banknotes causes the feeler arms to oscillate and the magnetic sensor sends a voltage pulse to the device 34 which commands the descent of the bottom 32 by one step.

The counterweight 56 makes it possible to adjust the sensitivity of the device. According to the sensitivity of the device each banknote which enters the storage or the successive entry of a certain number of banknotes causes the feeler arms to oscillate and the magnetic sensor sends a voltage pulse to the device 34 which commands the descent of the bottom 32 by one step. The tilting of the feeler arms is also adjustable. Instead of a magnetic sensor it would be possible to use any other sensor, for example an inductive or capacitive sensor.

Claims

1. Apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper comprising a store defined by a bottom wall and a side wall, a transport track leading to the store and comprising two inclined parallel plates, driving means for driving sheets of paper along the track between the plates, means defining a tubular chamber located at a lower end of the lower of the plates for connection to a source of compessed air and defining orifices orientated towards the bottom of the store at angles which lie between 30" and 60" inclusive, means for driving sheets of paper into the store, the side wall of which store serves as a stop for the sheets of paper arriving in the store, means for detecting the arrival of sheets of paper into the store, and means for the step by step lowering of the bottom wall of the store which means are controlled by the detection means.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which the orifices are distributed into two groups in each of which groups the orientation of the orifices lie at angles varying progressively between 30" and 60".

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which the means for driving the sheets of paper into the storage comprises a pair of rollers located at an input for the store, a pair of circular rotary brushes at the other end of the store, and at least one belt which kinematically links the rollers and the rotary brushes.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which the means for detecting the arrival of the sheets of paper in the store comprises at least one oscillating feeler arm acting on a magnetic sensor which controls the means for lowering the bottom wall of the store.

5. Anoaratus accordina to claim 4, in which each feeler arm is attached to a second arm which carries an adjustable counterweight and which cooperates with the sensor.

6. Apparatus for the storage of sheets of paper substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.