US2638344A - Paper money counting machine - Google Patents

Description

May 12, 1953 T. E. HAYES 2,638,344

PAPER MONEY COUNTING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 31, 1950 ATTORNEYS May 12, 1953 T. E. HAYES PAPER MONEY COUNTING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 31, 1950 INVENTOR [Mmvl [2 91 1 ATTORNEYS Patented May 12, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,638,344 PAPER MONEY COUNTING MACHINE Thomas E. Hayes, Washington, D. 0. Application July 31, 1950, Serial No. 176,907 4 Claims. (01. 271- 57) 1 relates to machines for counting paper money, and more particularly to automatic means to insure the accuracy of the count regardless of the rapidity withwhich the bills may be fed to the machine.

The present invention is adapted to be used in connection with a machine such as disclosed in my previous Patent No. 2,429,159, issued October 14, 1947. The machine of that patent is designed to receive bills in various compartments as they are sorted. The bills enter between rollers which This invention thereupon actuate counting mechanism. Al-

though many improvements have been made to speed up the operation of the machine so that the parts will function even though the bills are fed so rapidly that only a small space is present between the trailing end of one bill and the leading edge of the next, the operators become so proficient in the sorting and feeding of the bills thatat times the leading edge of one bill will slightly overlap the trailing edge of the one previously fed to the machine. As it is necessary for one bill to clear the rollers so that the upper roller can drop before the next bill enters if a count is to be made, the two bills will be counted as one and a miscount will result. The machine is equipped with automatic means to stop the rollers when a double bill is introduced 'butin order for this mechanism to function about one inch of the double thickness must pass between the rollers. The overlap resulting from rapid feeding is seldom this great and the double bill mechanism will not function to prevent the miscount.

I The object of the present invention is to provide mechanism to prevent the possibility of a miscount regardless of the speed of feeding the bills or the amount of overlap of the bills.

Another object of the invention is to provide such mechanism which will move to operative position with the entrance of each bill between the rollers, but will not retard or interfere with the free passage of the bills so long as they are not fed in overlapping relation.

A still further object is to provide such mechanism which will not stop the machine when bills are overlapped, but will merely retard the forward motion of the second bill until the first has passed from between the rollers, and then permit the second bill to proceedin normal fashion.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of one practical I in conjunction with the drawings which accompany and form a part of this specification.

embodiment thereof when taken In the drawings:

Figure l is a partial front elevation of a money counting machine'with the present invention shown applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of one of the lower feed rollers of the machine with a billretarding arm shown'in association therewith;

Figure 3 is a vertical transverse section taken on the line 3--3 of Figure 1 showing the operating mechanism for the bill-retarding arm shaft;

Figure ,4 is a vertical section through a pair of bill-feeding rollers and associated mechanism illustrating the inoperative position of the billretarding arm as a bill is about to enter between the rollers, and is taken on the line 4-4 of Fig.- ure 1; I

Figure 5 is a section similar to Figure 4 with the bill-retarding arm in operative position and preventing an overlapping bill from entering between the rollers;

Figurefi is a vertical section on the line 6-6 of Figure 4; and, I

Figure, '7 is a diagrammatic view of a portion of the controlcircuit for the machine illustrating the manner in which, the present invention is connected into that circuit.

Referring to the drawings in detail, there is shown a machine similar to that disclosed in Patent No. 2,429,159. This machine comprises a cabinet I in which a plurality of vertical compartments 2 are arranged. At the upper front of each compartment is a pair of feed rollers comprising a lower roller 3 which is mounted upon shaftA, and anupper roller 5 which is mounted for'vertical movement. The shaft 4 is common to all of the lower rollers, and is adapted to be continuously rotated by means of a. motor, not shown, through belt 6 which passes over pulley! mounted on the end of shaft 4. When a bill is presented to the rollers it is drawn inby the rotation of. the lower roller. The upper roller is lifted the thickness of the bill but rests by gravity upon the bill providing the necessary friction to insure the bill being fed into the compartment with which the rollers are associated. The lifting of the roller operates a switch to actuate a counter as set forth in detail in the above mentioned patent. v

In accordance with the present invention, each lower roller is formed in two parts 8 and 9, which are mounted upon a sleeve l0 and the roller parts and sleeve are .secured to the shaft 4 by set screws H. The roller parts are mounted upon the sleeve in spaced relation so that the roller as a whole is provided with a medial annular groove I2 of substantial depth. It will be obvious.

that the roller could be formed of one piece having a milled groove.

For each pair of feed rollers a bill-retarding arm 63 is provided, all of the arms being mounted upon a shaft M, and each arm being positioned upon the shaft so that its outer end may move freely within the groove I2 of its respective roller All of the arms will be fixed upon the shaft to lie in the same radial plane-with respect to. the shaft. The baseiof the arms may be split, and the arm clamped to the shaft by means of a screw.

The arm I3 is hook-like in shape, being formed with a vertical shoulder l5 near its for-ward end adapted to engage the leading edge of answer.- lapping bill and hold it against forward movement until the preceding bill has*passedthrough the rollers. The forward end of the arm.is reduced in height so thatit may lie within the groove it, when in its inoperative position, completely removedfrom the nipof' thefeed-rollers.

Arm I3 is operated. bym'eans of a lever 16 which is fixedly mountedon. thetendof shaft M.

The opposite end of thelever'isattached to the movable member of a rotarysol'enoid I i. The connection of the lever to the solenoid isby means of'a pin l8 projecting, from the solenoid and passing through a slot l9 inthe" end. of the lever. Thus, rotary motion. of the solenoid will cause the lever to rock the shaft M raising the arm lfi to operative position. A coiled spring 2.0. urges the lever to its inoperative position.

Solenoid [1 has its'coilconnected into the control-circuit of the machine. In Figure 7,.a portion of that circuit is shown, and the entire circuit is.illustrated in Patent No. 2,429,159. As explained in that. patent, the passage of. a bill through. the feed rollers. lifts the upper. roller and closes a circuit through the counter coils,

shown. at 21. in Figure '7. Theenergi'zation of the 4'" counter coils causes an armature to be moved to operate. the. counter mechanism, which, in turn, closes. a. circuit... through. a. relay 22'. which sets up a.hol di'ng circuit tocontinue the operation of the control circuitwhile permitting the counter mechanism. to. be. tie-energized? and return. to. its. inoperative. position. This. circuit is illustrated in Figure 71 as.followi'ng throughlines 23 and 24;. to counter switch. 25,.line 2.6'to holding relaycoil. 22,. and return lines 2.1, 28,. and 29.

Energization of relay. 22; will. lift its. armature closing certain contacts. A. holding. circuit. is then. set up, which. utilizes a. current. leakage.

through. the counter coils. as. described in. the.

above-mentioned patent. This circuit runsfrom the coils Eli through. line. 30. to. the relay contacts 3!, line 32, relay coil 22., and. lines. 2.1, 23, and 29. The actuation of. the relay closes contacts which. energize thesolenoidl I]... This. circuit is through. lines 23. andtz to. relay contacts 33,. line M to solenoid. 1.1,. and. lines and. 29.. Thus, whenever a billenters the. feed. rollers, solenoid I I will beenergized to move arms. [3 to operative. position. When the billpasses from between: the feed rollers the relay holding: circuit will be broken and the armature drop, opening contacts 23 and deenergizing the. solenoid l 1..

In operation theshaft 4% is. in continuous motion, and insertion of a. bill: between the rollers at a particular compartment will lift the upper roller of that pair causing acount to be made. As'soon as. thishappenszthe relay 22- is energized, and in turn the solenoid H. The solenoid will rotate counters-clockwise; as? viewed irr FigureA; rockingtshafii M: to; lift. the arm: I31

All of the arms IE will be lifted even though only one compartment is receiving at bill. The arms at the other compartments will merely rise, as they are so positioned that they will not contact any part of the machine. The arm at the compartment to which the bill is being fed will rise to strike the underside of the bill passing through the rollers. Due to the fact that the forward ends of i the arms; are.- positioned ahead of; the m'pcof therrollers,,the,bill will pass beyond the end of the arm while the arm is at rest in the groove of the lower roller. As soon as the bill enters the rollers, the arm will be lifted, and willbelield in-contact with the bill during the entire passagesof the bill through the rollers.

If the bill is not followed by another in overlapping relation, the arm will have no effect upon thebill-passing through. If, as shown in Figure 5, a second bill is fed too rapidly and slip beneath the first one, the shoulder 45, the edge of which'is'engagingthe'underside-of the first bill, will stop the forward movement of the second one and holdthat" bill stationary'until the first has passed completely through the rollers. Thereupon the solenoid l-lwill be ole-energized and the. arm" will drop into the roller groove out of contact with the second bill. The forward edge of that bill will then contact the rotating lower rollerand be drawn between the pair of rollers:

The action-of the solenoid ll is very light, and the arms are not heldin operative position with any; substantialforce; The force is sufficient to prevent an overlapping bill' which is not b tween the rollers from moving forward, but is not strong enough tohold thearm in position if an obstruction" which is on'the-bill between the rollers strikes the" shoulder; Therefore, if a torn bill which has been mended by pasting a strip over the tear. should enter: the rollers, the edge of the strip would. contact the shoulder on thearm'. As this'bill isbeing; drawn forward with some force; the arm will" be moved downward and the bill; will; continue. through the rollers.

While inthe above one practical embodiment of the invention has been disclosed, it will be understood'thatimany changes may bemade from the precise structure. shown without. departing from the scopeofinvention as defined in the appendedclaims What; is claimed is:

1..Ih.a.paper money countinginachine having a plurality of bill-receiving compartments andapair of bili-feedingrollers at the entrance to each. c.ompartment,. a shaft-extending across all. of saidiroller. pairs, aplurality of bill-stops equal in! number. to. the number of roller pairs attached. tosaid shaft, each of said bill-stops being. positioned. medially ofa roller pair, and means operable when. a. bill. enters between the rollers of. any. of saidroller pairs. to rock said shaftto-raise all of said bill-stopsto a position for yieldingly engaging the leading. edge of a bill. which may overlap. the. trailing edge of. a preceding; bill. engaged. between. the rollers. of a roller pair.

2; Inapaper money counting machine as claimed in claim 1-, said. means comprising a solenoid and: aplurality of.- switches in circuit, each of said switches being operable by the separation. movement. oi. a roller. pair when a bill entersbetween the :rollersof. the-pair to energize said solenoid;

3. In-apaper. money. counting. machine having a pluralityl of bill-receiving. compartments and a pair of bill-feeding rollers at the entrance to each compartment to feed the bills in a horizontal plane to said compartments, a shaft extending across all of said roller pairs, a plurality of bill-stops equal in number to the number of roller pairs attached to said shaft, one of the rollers of each pair having a peripheral groove to receive its associated bill-stop when the billstop is in inoperative position, and means operable when a bill enters between the rollers of any of said roller pairs to rock said shaft to raise all of said bill-stops out of said grooves to a position to yieldingly engage the leading edge of a bill which may overlap the trailing edge of a preceding bill engaged between the rollers of a 15 roller pair.

4. In a paper money counting machine as claimed in claim 3, said means comprising a 10 Number 6 rotary solenoid and a plurality of switches in circuit, each of said switches being operable by the separation movement of a roller pair when a bill enters between the rollers of the pair to energize said solenoid.

THOMAS E. HAYES.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date 487,278 Landfear Dec. 6, 1892 497,745 Bascom May 16, 1893 2,004,835 Schneider June 11, 1935 2,121,308 Wale June 21, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 600,160 Great Britain Apr. 1, 1948

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