Equipment for Processing Banknotes in Stack

• US 20080284085A1
• Filed: 11/21/2005
• Published: 11/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CTS Cashpro SPA
• Original Assignee: CTS Cashpro SPA
• Inventors: Giacone, Felice, Curina, Maurizio
• Granted Patent: US 7,997,576 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 271/3.15
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 11/10 Mechanical details
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 11/14 Inlet or outlet ports
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 11/22 Means for sensing or detection
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 11/50 Sorting or counting valuable papers

Abstract

Equipment for processing banknotes in stack, as an example for a banking deposit, including a transport mechanism for banknotes or similar sheets, and a receiving section the banknotes or sheets are transported at a given transport velocity (Vt) and the receiving section is arranged downstream of a section of the transport mechanism for receiving, in superimposition, the banknotes or sheets. The equipment comprises an interface mechanism with nipping members interposed between the transport mechanism and the receiving section and electronic control circuits which cause the nipping members to slow down the banknotes or sheets of the receiving section at a reduced velocity (Vb), in response to information of transit of the banknotes or sheets, making easy a regular stacking of the banknotes or sheets.

Claims

1. Equipment for processing banknotes in stack, for instance for a banking deposit, including a transport mechanism for individually transporting banknotes or similar sheets, and a receiving section for receiving, in superimposition, transported banknotes or sheets, wherein the banknotes or sheets are transported at a given transport velocity (Vt) and the receiving section is arranged downstream of a section of the transport mechanism, the equipment providing information of transit (from “

Q1”

, “

R1”

) for the transported banknotes or sheets and further comprising;

an interface mechanism with nipping members interposed between said section of the transport mechanism and the receiving section; and

at least one electronic control circuit operative on the interface mechanism for causing the nipping members to slow down the banknotes or sheets at the input of the receiving section making easy a regular stacking of the banknotes or sheets;

the nipping members, being engageable with the banknotes or sheets outgoing from the said section of the transport mechanism for the transport of the banknotes or sheets at a velocity (Vb, Vr) reduced with respect to the given transport velocity (Vt); and

the at least one electronic circuit controlling the interface mechanism in response to the information of transit of the banknotes or sheets.

2. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein the banknotes to be stacked are arranged along the transport mechanism so as to leave a safety distance (Δ

e) between two following banknotes;

said equipment being characterized in that the interface mechanism is provided for slowing down a banknote and disengaging the banknote from the nipping members in a braking time (Δ

b) less of a spacing time (Δ

t) requested by a following banknote to cross the safety distance (Δ

e) at the given transport velocity (Vt).

3. The equipment according to the claim 1, wherein the transport velocity is substantially constant, said equipment being characterized in that the interface mechanism controls the nipping members to engage the banknotes in transit in synchronism with the transport velocity (Vt).

4. The equipment according to claim 3, wherein after the disengagement of the banknote to be stacked, the interface mechanism accelerates the nipping members from the condition of engagement at the reduced velocity (Vr) to the condition of engagement at the given transport velocity (Vt) and in which the period of braking an acceleration (Δ

ba) is less of the spacing time (Δ

t) a time the necessary time to the following banknote to cross the safety distance from the preceding banknote.

5. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein the interface mechanism comprises servomotors, controlled by the said at least one electronic circuit and operatively connected with the nipping members.

6. The equipment according to the claim 1, wherein the interface mechanism comprises an electromagnetic element, of control for the nipping members, wherein each one of the nipping members has at least one motor element and a contrast element and in which the motor element defines a condition of transport at a reduced velocity (Vr), said electromagnetic element being actuatable for a condition of engagement of the banknote in transit between the motor element and the contrast element, to drag the banknote at the reduced velocity, the transport mechanism being actuated by a transport motor and the at least one motor element being actuated by the said transport motor.

7. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein the nipping members include a couple of shafts, each one having sections with rollers of different diameters, functional to the transport of the banknotes and wherein said rollers of different diameters define draw elements for a longitudinal stiffening of the banknotes to be stacked at the input of the receiving section.

8. The according to claim 7, wherein said draw elements are arranged upstream of the nipping members and include a couple of shafts with at least a motor shaft, wherein each shaft supports rollers of different diameter for a transversal deformation of the banknote, jointly to the transport, and wherein said motor shaft operates in synchronism with the transport mechanism.

9. The equipment according to claim 1, further comprising sensing elements (Q1, R1) arranged upstream of the interface mechanism, which respond to the passage of the banknotes or the sheets to be stacked, and wherein the information of transit for the at least one control circuit is associated to information from the sensing elements, in connection with the passage of the trailing edges of the banknotes or sheets to be stacked close to said nipping members.

10. The equipment according to claim 1, further comprising an extraction mechanism actuatable in a stacking step to push a pre-defined portion of the slowed down banknotes toward the stack or the sub-stack in said receiving section and in which the electronic circuits control the extraction mechanism to engage, as pre-defined portion, a terminal area of the banknotes adjacent to the trailing edge thereof.

11. The equipment according to claim 10, further comprising a sensing element (R1) arranged downstream of the nipping member and adjacent thereto and wherein said at least one electronic circuit responds to signals of the sensing element associated with the transit of the trailing edges of the banknote to synchronize the extraction mechanism with the transit of said trailing edges.

12. The equipment according to the claim 11, further comprising a wall defining an output window for the banknotes to be stacked, wherein said window is adjacent to the said nipping member and wherein said extraction mechanism comprises a shovel lever actuatable for cooperating with the pre-defined portion of the banknote in stacking, said shovel lever having a portion terminal adjacent to said window to cooperate with the terminal area of the banknote in stacking.

13. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein the receiving section is defined by a box provided for movement, wherein said box is delimited in a lower part and on an upper part by transport belt and wherein a lower belt support, as sub-stack, the banknotes or the sheets in stacking, an upper belt and the lower belts provided for mutual approach for the taking of the sub-stack to be transported and being spaced away to define a space of formation for the said sub-stack.

14. The equipment according to claim 13, wherein said box is shiftable between said wall and an opposed wall and in which the shovel lever is fulcrumed adjacent to the upper belts and is provided for movement between a position of rest in which it is spaced away from the lower transport belts and a position of actuation in which a terminal portion strikes a portion of the banknote crossing the output window.

15. A method for forming stacks of banknotes or similar sheets in an equipment for processing banknotes in stack, including a transport mechanism for banknotes, which operates in a substantially continuous way, and at least a receiving section for receiving stacks of piled banknotes, the method using at least one interface mechanism with a nipping member interposed between an output of the transport mechanism and a receiving section of reduced dimensions, said method comprising the steps:

a) presetting the nipping member to receive a banknote outgoing from the transport mechanism at its transport velocity (Vt);

b) actuating the nipping member for slowing down the banknote disengaged from the transport mechanism up to a predetermined minimum velocity (Vb, Vr);

c) permitting the banknote to be disengaged from the nipping member for superimposition on the stack in formation; and

d) conditioning the nipping members to receive a following banknote.

16. The method for forming stacks of banknotes according to claim 15, wherein the step of presetting the nipping member to receive a banknote outgoing from the transport mechanism at its transport velocity (Vt);

further includes the nipping member engaging a banknote outgoing from the transport mechanism in a condition of substantial synchronism with the transport mechanism and wherein the step of conditioning the nipping members to receive a following banknote further includes the nipping member being accelerated so as to reach the condition of substantial synchronism for the engagement with the following banknote to be stacked.

17. The method for forming stacks of banknotes according to claim 15, wherein the nipping member operates at a velocity (Vr) reduced with respect to the transport velocity (Vt) and wherein the steps of presetting the nipping member to receive a banknote outgoing from the transport mechanism at its transport velocity (Vt) and conditioning the nipping members to receive a following banknote further include said member receiving without interaction the banknote outgoing from the transport mechanism.

18. The method to form stacks of banknotes according to the claim 15, further including the use of at least one actuatable extraction mechanism in synchronism with the interface mechanism to push a portion of the disengaged banknotes toward the stack in formation.