Automated teller machine and method thereof

• US 5,185,515 A
• Filed: 10/24/1990
• Issued: 02/09/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Nishibe, Kunihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): LaRoche, Eugene R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tan
• Application Number:
  US07/602,859
• Time in Patent Office: 839 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/379, 235/380, 235/382, 434/112, 434/113, 434/117, 434/114, 340/712
• US Class Current: 235/379
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 19/20 Automatic teller machines [ATMs]
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 19/201 Accessories of ATMs
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 21/003 using tactile presentation of the information, e.g. Braille displays

Abstract

Disclosed is an automated teller machine including a transaction mediums processing part processing a cash card or a passbook on which information as to whether or not a user is a visually impaired person is recorded together with transaction information, a cash processing part paying and/or receiving cash, and an input part including an audio guidance part announcing audio guidance for a visually impaired person and a touch sensor part identifying a user'"'"'s touch on a guidance panel thereby applying the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input, and disclosed also is an automatic cash transaction method. When a visually impaired person makes a transaction, the transaction medium processing part confirms that the user is a visually impaired person by reading that information recorded on the card or the passbook, and, in response to this confirmation, the audio guidance part in the input part announces necessary audio guidance, while the touch sensor part permits application of the transaction input by the user'"'"'s touch on the guidance panel, so that the visually impaired person can easily operate the automated teller machine.

Claims

1. An automatic cash transaction method in which transaction mediums having transaction information recorded thereon are used for the transaction, said method comprising the steps of recognizing whether or not a user is a visually impaired person by reading said transaction mediums and, when the user is recognized as a visually impaired person, applying the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input by the user touching any portion of a guidance panel a predetermined number of times according to one of the amount of money and the kind of the transaction.

2. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 1, wherein said transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction is applied by the user in response to speech announced by audio guidance.

3. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 2, wherein said audio guidance issues an input confirmation sound in response to the application of said transaction input by the user touching any portion of said guidance panel.

4. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 2, wherein said audio guidance sequentially announces a series of figures, and said transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction is applied by the user touching any portion of said guidance panel as soon as the desired figure is announced.

5. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 1, wherein said transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction is applied by the user touching any portion of said guidance panel a plurality of times corresponding to the amount of money.

6. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 1, wherein said transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction is applied by the user touching any portion of said guidance panel a plurality of times equal to the number of bank notes to be drawn out.

7. An automatic cash transaction method in which transaction mediums having transaction information recorded thereon are used for the transaction, said method comprising the steps of recognizing whether or not a user is a visually impaired person by reading said transaction mediums and, when the user is recognized as a visually impaired person, applying the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input by the user touching a guidance panel a predetermined number of times according to one of the amount of money and the kind of the transaction;

wherein the user'"'"'s touch on said guidance panel is classified into a touch for a relatively long period of time and a touch for a relatively short period of time, and said touch for the relatively long period of time is used to input a figure larger by one digit place than that provided by said touch for the relatively short period of time.

8. An automatic cash transaction method in which transaction mediums having transaction information recorded thereon are used for the transaction, said method comprising the steps of recognizing whether or not a user is a visually impaired person by reading said transaction mediums and, when the user is recognized as a visually impaired person, applying the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input by the user touching a guidance panel a predetermined number of times according to one of the amount of money and the kind of the transaction;

wherein, when the user is recognized as a visually impaired person who is aged as a result of reading said transaction medium, various limits limiting the periods of time of application of said transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction are altered to facilitate operation by said aged person.

9. An automatic cash transaction method in which transaction mediums having transaction information recorded thereon are used for the transaction, said method comprising the steps of recognizing whether or not a user is a visually impaired person by reading said transaction mediums and, when the user is recognized as a visually impaired person, applying the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input by the user depicting a predetermined pattern on any portion of a guidance panel according to one of the amount of money and the kind of the transaction.

10. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 9, wherein said transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction is applied by the user in response to speech announced by audio guidance.

11. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 9, wherein said transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction is applied by the user depicting a figure or figures corresponding to the amount of money on any portion of said guidance panel.

12. An automatic cash transaction method in which transaction mediums having transaction information recorded thereon are used for the transaction, said method comprising the steps of recognizing whether or not a user is a visually impaired person by reading said transaction medium, applying, when the user is recognized as a visually impaired person, the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input by the user performing a predetermined operation on a guidance panel according to speech announced by audio guidance, and, after confirmation of the completion of the operation and the user'"'"'s touching of a dispensing opening, a transaction output representing the result of the transaction is dispensed from said dispensing opening.

13. An automatic cash transaction method according to claim 12, wherein said transaction output representing the results of the transaction is one of pay-out of cash and return of cash for cancelling a deposit transaction, and the cash is dispensed when a cover openably closing said dispensing opening is opened.

14. An automated teller machine in which transaction mediums having transaction information recorded thereon are used for the transaction, said machine comprising:

at least one of means for recognizing the number of times any portion of a guidance panel is touched by a user and means for recognizing at least one of a character, a symbol, and a pattern depicted by the user on any portion of the guidance panel, thereby identifying application of a transaction input representing the particulars of the transaction; and

means for performing the transaction in accordance with the transaction input.

15. An automated teller machine comprising:

transaction medium processing means for processing a transaction medium on which information as to whether or not a user is a visually impaired person is recorded together with transaction information;

cash processing means for at least one of paying and receiving cash;

input means including an audio guidance part announcing audio guidance and a touch sensor part identifying a predetermined number of touches on any portion of a guidance panel by the user for applying the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input, said audio guidance part announcing the audio guidance when said transaction medium processing means confirms that the transaction medium includes the information that the user is a visually impaired person, and said touch sensor part identifying the transaction input applied by the user touching any portion of said guidance panel according to the announced audio guidance; and

control means for controlling the cash processing means in accordance with the transaction input;

wherein said touch sensor part identifies the number of times of the user'"'"'s touch on any portion of said guidance panel according to one of the amount of money and the kind of the transaction input, thereby applying the transaction input.

16. An automated teller machine according to claim 15, wherein said cash processing means includes permitting means for permitting cash pay-out to the user when the machine one of pays the cash as a withdrawal and returns the cash as cancelling a deposit transaction, and, when said transaction medium processing means confirms that the transaction medium includes the information that the user is a visually impaired person, said permitting means permits dispensing of the cash to the user, after said audio guidance part in said input means announces the audio guidance permitting the cash dispensing after the user'"'"'s touch on any portion of said guidance panel, and said touch sensor part identifies the user'"'"'s touch on any portion of said guidance panel according to the announced audio guidance.

17. An automated teller machine comprising:

transaction medium processing means for processing a transaction medium on which information as to whether or not a user is a visually impaired person is recorded together with transaction information;

cash processing means for at least oen of paying and receiving cash;

input means including an audio guidance part announcing audio guidance and a sensor part identifying a pattern depicted by the user on any portion of a guidance panel for applying the particulars of the transaction as a transaction input, said audio guidance part announcing the audio guidance when said transaction medium processing means confirms that the transaction medium includes the information that the user is a visually impaired person, and said sensor part identifying the pattern depicted on any portion of said guidance panel by the user according to one of the amount of money and the kind of the transaction; and

control means for controlling the cash processing means in accordance with the transaction input.