Banking automation device for bank teller and method for controlling same

1. A teller cash recycler, comprising:

a handling unit including a bill receiving unit, a bill dispensing unit, a main conveyance unit, a discrimination device and at least one switching gate;

a safe provided under the handling unit and configured to provide a space for storing bills;

a cassette mounting part provided outside the safe;

a removable cassette selectively mounted to the cassette mounting part to supplement bills to the safe or collect the bills stored in the safe;

a control unit configured to control an operation of the teller cash recycler;

a plurality of cassettes provided inside the safe and configured to store bills, wherein the plurality of cassettes include a plurality of first cassettes having a first size, and a plurality of second cassettes having a second size smaller than the first size;

at least one vertical conveyance unit having an upper end connected to the main conveyance unit and a lower end connected to the second cassettes; and

a plurality of interfaces configured to provide conveyance routes between the handling unit and the safe, each of the interfaces having an upper end connected to the main conveyance unit and a lower end extending downward from the handling unit and inserted into the safe,

wherein the bills stored in the removable cassette are conveyed between the handling unit and the second cassette through at least one of the interfaces and said at least one vertical conveyance unit.

2. The teller cash recycler of claim 1 ,

wherein the first cassettes are disposed at an upper side in the safe in a spaced-apart relationship in a front-rear direction, and the second cassettes are disposed at a lower side in the safe in a spaced-apart relationship in the front-rear direction.

3. The teller cash recycler of claim 2 ,

wherein the plurality of interfaces include additional interfaces configured to provide conveyance routes between the handling unit and the first cassettes, each of the additional interfaces having an upper end connected to the main conveyance unit and a lower end extending downward from the handling unit and directly connected to the corresponding first cassette.

4. The teller cash recycler of claim 1 , wherein the main conveyance unit includes:

an upper conveyance path selectively connected to the bill receiving unit;

a first vertical conveyance path extending downward from an end of the upper conveyance path opposite to the bill receiving unit;

a lower conveyance path connected to a lower end of the first vertical conveyance path;

a second vertical conveyance path having an upper end selectively connected to a bill-receiving-unit side portion of the upper conveyance path and a lower end selectively connected to the lower conveyance path;

a bill dispensing conveyance path having one end selectively connected to a bill-dispensing-unit side end of the lower conveyance path and the other end connected to the bill dispensing unit; and

a supplement/collection conveyance path having one end selectively connected to the bill-dispensing-unit side end of the lower conveyance path and the other end connected to the removable cassette when the removable cassette is mounted to the cassette mounting part.

5. The teller cash recycler of claim 4 , further comprising:

a first switching gate configured to have a first posture in which the first switching gate connects the bill receiving unit and the upper conveyance path, and a second posture in which the first switching gate connects the upper conveyance path and the second vertical conveyance path.

6. The teller cash recycler of claim 4 , wherein the lower conveyance path includes:

a first section extending from the lower end of the first vertical conveyance path;

a second section having one end selectively connected to the first section and the other end selectively connected to the second vertical conveyance path; and

a third section having one end selectively connected to one of the second section and the second vertical conveyance path, and the other end selectively connected to one of the bill dispensing conveyance path and the supplement/collection conveyance path.

7. The teller cash recycler of claim 6 , wherein the bills are conveyed between the handling unit and the safe in the first section.

8. The teller cash recycler of claim 6 , further comprising:

an abnormal bill storage cassette provided inside the safe and configured to store abnormal bills; and

a second switching gate configured to have a first posture in which the second switching gate connects the first section and the second section, a second posture in which the second switching gate connects the second section and the abnormal bill storage cassette, and a third posture in which the second switching gate connects the first section and the abnormal bill storage cassette.

9. The teller cash recycler of claim 6 , further comprising:

a third switching gate configured to have a first posture in which the third switching gate connects the second section and the third section, a second posture in which the third switching gate connects the second vertical conveyance path and the third section, and a third posture in which the third switching gate connects the second vertical conveyance path and the second section.

10. The teller cash recycler of claim 6 , wherein when supplementing the bills from the removable cassette into the safe, the control unit connects the supplement/collection conveyance path and the third section, connects the third section and the second vertical conveyance path, and connects the second vertical conveyance path and the upper conveyance path.

11. The teller cash recycler of claim 10 , wherein when the bills supplemented into the safe are discriminated to be abnormal, the control unit connects the first section and the second section, connects the second section and the third section, and connects the third section and the bill dispensing conveyance path, so that the abnormal bills are discharged to the bill dispensing unit.

12. The teller cash recycler of claim 11 , wherein the control unit is configured to interrupt discharge of the bills from the removable cassette.

13. The teller cash recycler of claim 12 , wherein the control unit is configured to resume the discharge of the bills stored in the removable cassette after the abnormal bills are discharged to the bill dispensing unit.

14. The teller cash recycler of claim 11 , wherein the bill dispensing unit includes a first bill dispensing port and a second bill dispensing port, and the control unit is configured to discharge the abnormal bills to the first bill dispensing port if the abnormal bills are not counterfeit bills, and discharge the abnormal bills to the second bill dispensing port if the abnormal bills are counterfeit bills.

15. The teller cash recycler of claim 1 , wherein the teller cash recycler performs a method comprising:

discharging the bills from the removable cassette mounted to the cassette mounting part;

conveying the bills to the discrimination device;

discriminating abnormality of the bills by the discrimination device; and

conveying the bills to the safe and storing the bills in the safe if the bills are normal, and returning the bills to a user if the bills are abnormal.

16. The teller cash recycler of claim 15 , wherein the method further comprises:

interrupting discharge of the bills from the removable cassette when abnormal bills are found;

detecting whether the abnormal bills have been returned to the user; and

resuming the discharge of the bills from the removable cassette when the abnormal bills have been returned to the user.