Apparatus and system for imaging currency bills and financial documents and method for using the same

• US 8,644,583 B1
• Filed: 02/04/2013
• Issued: 02/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cummins-Allison Corporation (Crane Company)
• Original Assignee: Cummins-Allison Corporation (Crane Company)
• Inventors: Mennie, Douglas U., Susai, Antony D., Jones, William J., Csulits, Frank M., Anderson, Matthew L., Klein, Robert J., Jaeger, Ralf H., Badalamenti, David R., Beutel, Dale E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bhatnagar, Anand
• Application Number:
  US13/758,755
• Time in Patent Office: 365 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/135, 382/136, 382/137, 382/138, 382/139, 382/140, 194/4, 348/92, 348/135, 209/534, 235/379, 235/375, 356/71, 902/7, 705/45
• US Class Current: 382/135
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/003 using security elements using digital security elements G07D7/004

Abstract

Currency bills are received, transported, and imaged to produce image data from which a visually readable image of each currency bill can be reproduced. Each of the currency bills includes a denomination, a serial number, and a set of secondary identifiers. One of the currency bills is determined to be a suspect bill. The suspect bill serial number is attempted to be extracted from the image data associated with the suspect bill. In response to failing to extract a complete serial number of the suspect bill, a serial number field in a suspect report is populated with a serial number snippet image.

Claims

1. A method of processing currency bills in a document processing system, the method comprising:

receiving currency bills in an input receptacle of the document processing system, each of the currency bills including a denomination, a serial number, and a set of secondary identifiers;

transporting the currency bills from the input receptacle in a serial fashion, past an image scanner, to one or more output receptacles;

imaging each of the currency bills using the image scanner to produce image data from which a visually readable image of each currency bill can be reproduced;

determining that one of the currency bills is a suspect bill;

attempting to extract, from the image data associated with the suspect bill, the serial number of the suspect bill, the serial number of the suspect bill having an integer number, X, of characters;

failing to extract all of the X characters of the serial number of the suspect bill; and

in response to determining that a currency bill is a suspect bill and in response to failing to extract all of the X characters of the serial number of the suspect bill, populating a serial number field in a suspect report with a serial number snippet image.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

attempting to determine the denomination of the suspect bill;

failing to determine the denomination of the suspect bill; and

in response to failing to determine the denomination of the suspect bill, populating a denomination field in the suspect report with a denomination snippet image.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

attempting to extract, from the image data associated with the suspect bill, the set of secondary identifiers of the suspect bill, the set of secondary identifiers containing one or more secondary identifiers, each of the one or more secondary identifiers having a respective integer number of characters;

failing to extract all of the respective integer number of characters of one or more of the secondary identifiers contained in the set of secondary identifiers of the suspect bill; and

in response to failing to extract all of the respective integer number of characters of the one or more of the secondary identifiers contained in the set of secondary identifiers of the suspect bill, populating corresponding secondary identifier fields in the suspect report as follows;

(i) for each completely extracted secondary identifier, populating the corresponding secondary identifier field with a corresponding one of the completely extracted secondary identifiers;

(ii) for each partially extracted secondary identifier, populating the corresponding secondary identifier field with a corresponding one of the partially extracted secondary identifiers, a corresponding secondary identifier snippet image, or both; and

(iii) for each secondary identifier completely not extracted, populating the corresponding secondary identifier field with a corresponding secondary identifier snippet image.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the set of secondary identifiers includes one or more of a federal reserve letter/number, a series, a check letter and quadrant number, a check letter and face plate number, and a back plate number.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the received stack of currency bills is associated with a single deposit transaction.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the suspect report is required by a third party.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the third party is a governmental agency.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of transporting includes transporting currency bills in a wide-edge leading manner at a rate of at least about 100 bills per minute.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of transporting includes transporting currency bills in a wide-edge leading manner at a rate of at least about 600 bills per minute.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of transporting includes transporting currency bills in a wide-edge leading manner at a rate of at least about 10 bills per minute.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising transmitting the suspect report to a printing device and printing the suspect report using the printing device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the act of printing comprises printing the suspect report at a rate of at least 5 reports per minute.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the act of printing comprises printing the suspect report at a rate of at least 20 reports per minute.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the act of printing comprises printing the suspect report at a rate of at least 2 reports per minute.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the act of imaging comprises imaging the currency bills at a resolution of about 400 DPI by 400 DPI.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of determining that one of the currency bills is a suspect bill comprises scanning each currency bill with one or more of a magnetic sensor, an optical sensor, a capacitive sensor, or any combination thereof.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of determining that one of the currency bills is a suspect bill is based on the serial number extracted from the currency bill.

18. A currency bill processing apparatus, the apparatus comprising:

an input receptacle configured to receive currency bills, each of the currency bills including a denomination, a serial number, and a set of secondary identifiers;

an image scanner configured to image each of the currency bills to produce image data from which a visually readable image of each currency bill can be reproduced;

a transport mechanism for transporting the currency bills from the input receptacle in a serial fashion, past the image scanner, to one or more output receptacles;

a controller configured to;

determine if one of the currency bills is a suspect bill,

in response to determining that a currency bill is a suspect bill, attempt to extract, from the image data associated with the suspect bill, the serial number of the suspect bill, the serial number of the suspect bill having an integer number, X, of characters; and

in response to determining that a currency bill is a suspect bill and in response to failing to extract all of the X characters of the serial number of the suspect bill, populate a serial number field in a suspect report with a serial number snippet image.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the controller is further configured to:

attempt to determine the denomination of the suspect bill; and

in response to failing to determine the denomination of the suspect bill, populating a denomination field in the suspect report with a denomination snippet image.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the controller is further configured to:

attempt to extract, from the image data associated with the suspect bill, the set of secondary identifiers of the suspect bill, the set of secondary identifiers containing one or more secondary identifiers, each of the one or more secondary identifiers having a respective integer number of characters; and

in response to failing to extract all of the respective integer number of characters of the one or more of the secondary identifiers contained in the set of secondary identifiers of the suspect bill, populating corresponding secondary identifier fields in the suspect report as follows;

(i) for each completely extracted secondary identifier, populating the corresponding secondary identifier field with a corresponding one of the completely extracted secondary identifiers;

(ii) for each partially extracted secondary identifier, populating the corresponding secondary identifier field with a corresponding one of the partially extracted secondary identifiers, a corresponding secondary identifier snippet image, or both; and

(iii) for each secondary identifier completely not extracted, populating the corresponding secondary identifier field with a corresponding secondary identifier snippet image.

21. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein determining if one of the currency bills is a suspect bill includes the controller being configured to process information generated from scanning each currency bill with one or more of a magnetic sensor, an optical sensor, a capacitive sensor, or any combination thereof.

22. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the image scanner images the currency bills at a resolution of about 400 DPI by 400 DPI.

23. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the set of secondary identifiers includes one or more of a federal reserve letter/number, a series, a check letter and quadrant number, a check letter and face plate number, and a back plate number.

24. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein input receptacle is configured to receive a stack of currency bills associated with a single deposit transaction.

25. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the transport mechanism conveys the currency bills in a wide-edge leading manner at a rate of at least about 100 bills per minute.

26. A system for processing currency bills, the system comprising:

an input receptacle configured to receive currency bills, each of the currency bills including a denomination, a serial number, and a set of secondary identifiers;

an image scanner configured to image each of the currency bills to produce image data from which a visually readable image of each currency bill can be reproduced;

a transport mechanism for transporting the currency bills from the input receptacle in a serial fashion, past the image scanner, to one or more output receptacles;

a controller configured to;

determine if one of the currency bills is a suspect bill,

in response to determining that a currency bill is a suspect bill, attempt to extract, from the image data associated with the suspect bill, the serial number of the suspect bill, the serial number of the suspect bill having an integer number, X, of characters; and

in response to determining that a currency bill is a suspect bill and in response to failing to extract all of the X characters of the serial number of the suspect bill, populate a serial number field in a suspect report with a serial number snippet image.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein the transport mechanism conveys the currency bills in a wide-edge leading manner and wherein the image scanner images the currency bills at a resolution of about 400 DPI by 400 DPI, the system further comprising an output interface configured to transmit the generated suspect report to a printing device.