Coin separating device
View Patent ↗A coin separating device has a conveying device for conveying coins along a conveying section in a conveying direction from an input container, a checking device arranged on the conveying section for checking a coin conveyed along the conveying section and for providing a check result signal, a coin collecting device for collecting coins and a coin bridge device that is arranged between the coin collecting device and the conveying device and is realized to receive the check result signal and, in dependence on the check result signal, either to take over a conveyed coin from the conveying device by means of a movably arranged slide and supply it to the coin collecting device by means of the slide or not to take over a conveyed object from the conveying device such that the conveyed object passes from the conveying device to a return means of the coin separating device.
1. A coin separating device, comprising
a conveying device having opposite upstream and downstream ends and a conveying section between the ends, the conveying device being configured for conveying coins along the conveying section in a conveying direction from an input container in proximity to the upstream end to the downstream end;
a checking device arranged on the conveying section for checking a coin conveyed along the conveying section and for providing a check result signal that distinguishes between acceptable coins and unacceptable objects;
a coin collecting device spaced downstream from the downstream end of the conveying device for collecting the acceptable coins; and
a coin bridge device arranged between the coin collecting device and the conveying device and communicating with the checking device to receive the check result signal, the coin bridge device having a slide with a pick-up end facing the downstream end of the conveying device and an ejector end gravitationally lower than the pick-up end and gravitationally above the coin collecting device, and a drive that positions the pick-up end of the slide into proximity with the downstream end of the conveying device when the check result signal indicates an acceptable coin so that the acceptable coin slides gravitationally along the slide from the conveying device to the coin collecting device and that moves the pick-up end of the slide away from the downstream end of the conveying device when the check result signal indicates an unacceptable object such that the conveyed unacceptable object falls gravitationally from the downstream end of the conveying device to a return means of the coin separating device.
2. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the drive of the coin bridge device is coupled to the slide by a coupling member.
3. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the drive includes a stepping motor.
4. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the coupling member comprises a recess in which a protruding element of the slide engages for coupling the slide to the drive.
5. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein when the coin separating device is arranged and used as intended, the conveying direction is directed with at least one direction vector component in opposition to a direction of gravity.
6. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the slide includes a substantially flat slide top surface that is arranged in a steep manner.
7. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the slide comprises a side strip.
8. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the conveying device comprises a conveyor belt with two synchronously moved conveying strands that extend parallel to one another along the conveying direction, wherein at least one entrainment means is arranged on each conveying strand and one entrainment means of the one conveying strand and one entrainment means of the other conveying strand form an entrainment pair for entraining a coin.
9. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the coin collecting device comprises a sorting device for sorting the coins supplied to the coin collecting device.
10. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the sorting device directs each coin in dependence on a coin type into a coin collecting container of the coin collecting device associated with the coin type.
11. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the coin collecting device comprises a control device configured to detect a coin in the coin collecting device.
12. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the drive is operative to move the slide substantially linearly.
13. The coin separating device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the pick-up end of the slide has a surface aligned parallel to a tangent of a roller at the downstream end of the conveying device.
14. A method for operating a coin separating device, wherein the coin separating device comprises:
conveying objects along a conveying section in a conveying direction from an input container;
sequentially checking the objects conveyed along the conveying section and providing a check result signal to indicate whether each object is an acceptable coin or an unacceptable object; and
operating a coin bridge device to position a pick-up end of a slide adjacent a downstream end of the conveying device when the check result signal indicates an acceptable coin so that the acceptable coin is deposited on the pick-up end of the slide and slid gravitationally down along the slide for deposition in a coin collecting device, and moving the pick-up end of the slide away from the downstream end of the conveying device when the check result signal indicates an unacceptable object such that the unacceptable object falls gravitationally from the downstream end of the conveying device to a return means of the coin separating device.