U.S. patent application number 12/021448 was filed with the patent office on 2008-08-07 for card processor.
This patent application is currently assigned to Aruze Corp.. Invention is credited to Takahisa OONISHI, Takashi OOTO.
Application Number | 20080185769 12/021448 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39675489 |
Filed Date | 2008-08-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080185769 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
OONISHI; Takahisa ; et
al. |
August 7, 2008 |
CARD PROCESSOR
Abstract
A card processor of the present invention has: an insertion
slot, into which a card is inserted; a carriage path, along which
the card inserted from the insertion slot is carried; a stock
portion, which is installed on a downstream side of the carriage
path and capable of housing inserted cards in a stacked state; and
a housing drive mechanism, which houses a card into the stock
portion, wherein the housing drive mechanism includes an
oscillating member having a first projecting/withdrawing portion
which is located on the insertion slot side and capable of
projecting and withdrawing from the carriage path and a second
projecting/withdrawing portion which is located on the stock
portion side and capable of projecting and withdrawing from the
carriage path, the oscillating member being oscillatably supported
via a shaft, and the second projecting/withdrawing portion of the
oscillating member presses up the cards housed in the stock portion
when the card inserted from the insertion slot presses down the
first projecting/withdrawing portion of the oscillating member.
Inventors: |
OONISHI; Takahisa; (Koto-ku,
JP) ; OOTO; Takashi; (Koto-ku, JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
OBLON, SPIVAK, MCCLELLAND MAIER & NEUSTADT, P.C.
1940 DUKE STREET
ALEXANDRIA
VA
22314
US
|
Assignee: |
Aruze Corp.
Koto-ku
JP
Seta Corp.
Koto-ku
JP
|
Family ID: |
39675489 |
Appl. No.: |
12/021448 |
Filed: |
January 29, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
271/3.14 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65H 2301/42322
20130101; B65H 29/18 20130101; B65H 3/34 20130101; B65H 83/025
20130101; B65H 2301/42122 20130101; B65H 2701/1914 20130101; G06K
13/0831 20130101; B65H 3/04 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
271/3.14 |
International
Class: |
B65H 29/22 20060101
B65H029/22; B65H 5/00 20060101 B65H005/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Feb 2, 2007 |
JP |
2007-024098 |
Claims
1. A card processor comprising: an insertion slot, into which a
card is inserted; a carriage path, along which the card inserted
from said insertion slot is carried; a stock portion, which is
installed on a downstream side of said carriage path and capable of
housing inserted cards in a stacked state; and a housing drive
mechanism, which houses a card into said stock portion, wherein
said housing drive mechanism includes an oscillating member having
a first projecting/withdrawing portion which is located on said
insertion slot side and capable of projecting and withdrawing from
said carriage path and a second projecting/withdrawing portion
which is located on said stock portion side and capable of
projecting and withdrawing from said carriage path, said
oscillating member being oscillatably supported via a shaft, and
said second projecting/withdrawing portion of said oscillating
member presses up the cards housed in said stock portion when the
card inserted from said insertion slot presses down said first
projecting/withdrawing portion of said oscillating member.
2. The card processor according to claim 1, wherein an inclined
face gradually rising toward a card carrying direction is formed on
said first projecting/withdrawing portion.
3. The card processor according to claim 1, wherein a roller is
rotatably supported in said first projecting/withdrawing portion so
that the card being carried comes in sliding contact with said
roller.
4. The card processor according to claim 3, wherein a small
diameter portion is formed on said roller so that part of the
surface of the card being carried does not come into contact with
said roller.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims benefit of priority based on
Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-024098 filed on Feb. 2, 2007.
The contents of this application are incorporated herein by
reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a card processor that
executes information writing processing and information reading
processing on card-shaped information recording media, and
specifically relates to a card processor having a stock portion,
inside the processor body, the stock portion being capable of
housing a plurality of cards.
[0004] 2. Discussion of the Background
[0005] The above-mentioned card processor typically comprises: a
card insertion slot (hereinafter referred to as an insertion slot)
into which a card is inserted; and a carriage mechanism which
carries the card inserted into the insertion slot to a
predetermined processing position. Among such card processors,
there are those comprising a stock portion capable of housing a
plurality of cards so as to house cards inserted from the insertion
slot and write information into a housed card for issuance.
[0006] As the card processor comprising the stock portion as just
described, for example, a card processor is known which is set in a
pachinko ball lending machine installed at a recreational hall or
the like, as disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3809612. Namely, such
a card processor discharges pachinko balls in number corresponding
to the selected amount of money if a prepaid card, which has been
previously issued by a predetermined amount of money being paid, is
inserted into an insertion slot; at the time when the balance in
the card is used up, the card processor collects the prepaid card
having been inserted as it is and houses the card into the stock
portion (the card processor returns the prepaid card to the player
when the card balance is left). Alternatively, if money is inserted
by the user, the card processor takes out a card housed in the
stock portion and writes into the card the amount of money
inserted, and then issues the card to the player (prepaid card
issuance).
[0007] In the card processor comprising the stock portion as
described above, it is necessary to provide a drive mechanism for
housing a card into the stock portion. For example, a drive
mechanism of the card processor disclosed in Japanese Patent No.
3809612 comprises a shutter plate oscillatable in the shape of a
seesaw, the shutter plate having a flap, integrally formed on one
end, configured to close a card insertion slot and a projection,
integrally formed on the other end, configured to press up a
stocked card. The projection side of this shutter plate is pressed
up by rotation of a card lift cam fixed to a card lift drive motor,
thereby pressing up the undersurface of the stocked card to form a
gap between the card and the carriage path so that a card inserted
from the insertion slot can be housed into the stock portion.
[0008] The contents of Japanese Patent No. 3809612 are incorporated
herein by reference in their entirety.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] Since the card processor disclosed in Japanese Patent No.
3809612 described above requires the driving portion (card lift
cam, card lift drive motor) for pressing up the projection formed
on the shutter plate, the configuration of the drive mechanism for
housing a card into the stock portion is complicated and the cost
thereof is thus high. Especially in the event of failure in the
drive portion, the card carrying operation may become unstable or
the housing operation may be hindered.
[0010] The present invention was made with attention focused on the
above-mentioned problem, and has an object to provide a card
processor where a configuration of a housing drive mechanism for
housing a card into a stock portion is simplified so that a stable
card carrying operation and card housing operation can be
performed.
[0011] In order to attain the above object, a card processor
recited in claim 1 comprises: an insertion slot, into which a card
is inserted; a carriage path, along which the card inserted from
the insertion slot is carried; a stock portion, which is installed
on a downstream side of the carriage path and capable of housing
inserted cards in a stacked state; and a housing drive mechanism,
which houses a card into the stock portion, wherein the housing
drive mechanism includes an oscillating member having a first
projecting/withdrawing portion which is located on the insertion
slot side and capable of projecting and withdrawing from the
carriage path and a second projecting/withdrawing portion which is
located on the stock portion side and capable of projecting and
withdrawing from the carriage path, the oscillating member being
oscillatably supported via a shaft, and the second
projecting/withdrawing portion of the oscillating member presses up
the cards housed in the stock portion when the card inserted from
the insertion slot presses down the first projecting/withdrawing
portion of the oscillating member.
[0012] According to the card processor having the above-mentioned
configuration, when a card is inserted into the insertion slot, the
card presses down the first projecting/withdrawing portion of the
oscillating member. Thereby the oscillating member oscillates and
the second projecting/withdrawing portion rises, to press up a card
housed in the stock portion located above the second
projecting/withdrawing portion. Pressing up the card leads to
formation of a gap between the carriage path and the surface of the
card housed in the stock portion. A card is carried in through this
gap and is newly stacked and housed in the stock portion. As just
described, only oscillating the oscillating member along with
performing the card carrying operation enables housing of the card
into the stock portion, thereby simplifying the configuration of
the housing drive mechanism without provision of a drive component
such as a motor or a cam. Therefore, destabilization of the
operation for housing the card into the stock portion due to
failure in the drive component or the like can be suppressed.
[0013] Further, the invention according to claim 2 is characterized
in that an inclined face gradually rising toward a card carrying
direction is formed on the first projecting/withdrawing
portion.
[0014] According to the card processor having the above-mentioned
configuration, formation of the inclined face allows smooth
movement of the card passing the first projecting/withdrawing
portion, thereby facilitating the card inserting operation. In this
case, the inclined face may be formed on the internal side of the
processor body so long as being configured to be capable of
returning the card toward the insertion slot side.
[0015] Moreover, the invention according to claim 3 is
characterized in that a roller is rotatably supported in the first
projecting/withdrawing portion so that the card being carried comes
in sliding contact with the roller.
[0016] According to the card processor having the above-mentioned
configuration, installation of the rotatable roller allows smoother
carriage of the card as well as alleviation of contact resistance
to the card, thereby efficiently preventing damage on the card.
[0017] Furthermore, the present invention according to claim 4 is
characterized in that a small diameter portion is formed on the
roller so that part of the surface of the card being carried does
not come into contact with the roller.
[0018] According to the card processor having the above-mentioned
configuration, previous formation of the small diameter portion on
the rotatable roller can prevent the card surface from partially
coming into contact with the roller at the region of the small
diameter portion when the card is carried. Namely, the card surface
may be provided with a column to write a name in at a previously
determined position, and in a roller without the small diameter
portion, the name part may be rubbed and thus the name may be
erased; however, previously forming the small diameter portion
allows the card to be protected such that the name is not rubbed
and thus erased.
[0019] According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain
a card processor in which a configuration of a housing drive
mechanism for housing a card into a stock portion is simplified and
a stable card carrying operation and card housing operation can be
performed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] FIG. 1 is a view showing a configuration of a card
processor, as well as a plan view showing a whole
configuration.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a view showing a state where a stock portion has
been opened.
[0022] FIG. 3 is a view showing a state where the substrate
installation frame has been removed from the state shown in FIG. 2,
as well as a view showing a configuration of a card carriage
path.
[0023] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the card insertion slot
portion shown in FIG. 3.
[0024] FIG. 5 is a view of the card processor seen from the rear
side.
[0025] FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of main parts of FIG. 5.
[0026] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an
oscillating member (first oscillating member) constituting a
shutter mechanism.
[0027] FIG. 8 is a view showing an operation of the oscillating
member when a card moves from the insertion slot (Part 1).
[0028] FIG. 9 is a view showing an operation of the oscillating
member when the card moves from the insertion slot (Part 2).
[0029] FIG. 10 is a view showing an operation of the oscillating
member when the card moves from the insertion slot (Part 3).
[0030] FIG. 11 is a view showing an operation of the oscillating
member when the card moves from the insertion slot (Part 4).
[0031] FIG. 12A is a view showing a configuration of a roller, and
FIG. 12B is a view showing a modified example of the roller.
[0032] FIG. 13 is an enlarged perspective view of a fixing member
that supports a roller constituting a carriage mechanism.
[0033] FIG. 14 is a view showing a state where the roller is held
between a pair of fixing members.
[0034] FIG. 15A and FIG. 15B are views each showing a fixing member
in which the position of the central shaft holding portion has been
changed.
[0035] FIG. 16 is a view of a stock portion seen from the insertion
slot side.
[0036] FIG. 17 is a view showing a state where a card is housed in
the stock portion.
[0037] FIG. 18A is a plan view showing a configuration of an
oscillating member (second oscillating member) that constitutes a
housing drive mechanism, and FIG. 18B is a side view thereof.
[0038] FIG. 19 is a view showing functions of the second
oscillating member and the stock portion when the card is carried
from the insertion slot (Part 1).
[0039] FIG. 20 is a view showing functions of the second
oscillating member and the stock portion when the card is carried
from the insertion slot (Part 2).
[0040] FIG. 21 is a view showing functions of the second
oscillating member and the stock portion when the card is carried
from the insertion slot (Part 3).
[0041] FIG. 22 is a view showing functions of the second
oscillating member and the stock portion when the card is carried
from the insertion slot (Part 4).
[0042] FIG. 23 is a view showing functions of the second
oscillating member and the stock portion when the card is carried
from the stock portion toward the insertion slot (Part 1).
[0043] FIG. 24 is a view showing functions of the second
oscillating member and the stock portion when the card is carried
from the stock portion toward the insertion slot (Part 2).
[0044] FIG. 25 is a view showing functions of the second
oscillating member and the stock portion when the card is carried
from the stock portion toward the insertion slot (Part 3).
[0045] FIG. 26 is a view showing a state where the card is held at
the insertion slot by the second oscillating member.
[0046] FIG. 27 is a perspective view showing a state where the card
is held at the insertion slot by the second oscillating member.
[0047] FIG. 28 is a view showing another example of the
projecting/withdrawing portion that holds the card at the insertion
slot.
[0048] FIG. 29A is a plan view showing a modified example of the
second oscillating member, and FIG. 29B is a side view thereof.
[0049] FIG. 30A is a cross-sectional view along the A-A line of
FIG. 29A, and FIG. 30B is a cross-sectional view along the B-B line
of FIG. 29A.
[0050] FIG. 31 is a front view of the second oscillating member, as
well as a view showing the state of incorporating a roller.
DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0051] In the following, an embodiment of a card processor
according to the present invention is described with reference to
drawings. It is to be noted that a card processor in the present
embodiment has such a configuration as to be suitably installed
mainly in a game media lending machine in a recreation hall such as
a pachinko hall. Namely, the card processor in the present
embodiment is configured to be able to: read and rewrite
amount-of-money information by insertion of a card (prepaid card)
with amount-of-money information written therein; return a card
with rewritten amount-of-money information or collect a card when
the amount becomes zero; and write amount-of-money information into
a card previously in stock by insertion of an amount of money, to
issue the card (prepaid card).
[0052] FIG. 1 to FIG. 6 are views showing configurations of the
card processor. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a whole
configuration, FIG. 2 is a view showing a state where a stock
portion has been opened from the state shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a
view showing a state where the substrate installation frame has
been removed from the state shown in FIG. 2, as well as a view
showing a configuration of a card carriage path, FIG. 4 is an
enlarged view of the card insertion slot portion shown in FIG. 3,
and FIG. 5 is a view of the card processor seen from the rear
side.
[0053] A card processor 1 of the present embodiment is for example
configured so as to be incorporated into a game media lending
machine (not shown) installed between a variety of gaming machines
such as pachinko machines and slot machines. In this case, other
devices (e.g. bill processor, a power unit, and the like) may be
previously installed on the upper side or the lower side with
respect to the card processor 1 in the game media lending machine;
the card processor 1 may be integrated with these other devices, or
may be configured separately therefrom. While executing prepaid
card reading processing and return processing/collect processing as
described above, the card processor 1 is capable of executing card
issuance processing by insertion of a bill into a bill processor
which is not shown.
[0054] The card processor 1 comprises a frame 2 formed in the shape
of a substantially rectangular prism, and this frame 2 is mounted
on a locking portion of a game media lending machine which is not
shown. The frame 2 has: a body frame 2A constituting a processor
body; a stock portion 2B which is configured to stack and house a
plurality of cards and installed on the card carriage downstream
side of the body frame 2A; and a substrate mounted frame 2C which
is installed on the card carriage upstream side of the body frame
2A and has a control substrate 200 mounted thereon for controlling
the whole processor. It is to be noted that, although FIG. 1 shows
the state of the control substrate 200 being exposed, the control
substrate 200 is actually in the state of being covered by a cover
which is not shown.
[0055] As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the stock portion 2B is
configured to be opened from and closed into the body frame 2A with
a base as its rotational center. Other than being mounted with the
control substrate 200, the substrate mounted frame 2C rotatably
holds rollers 22, 23 constituting a later-described carriage
mechanism, a plurality of pinch rollers 101, 102 in contact with a
carriage belt 25, and the like. It is to be noted that a torsion
spring 110 is arranged between a shaft of the pinch roller 101 and
a shaft of the pinch roller 102, and the pinch rollers 101, 102 are
biased toward the rollers 22, 23 and the carriage belt 25 side.
[0056] The body frame 2A has the shape of a substantially
rectangular prism, and at its center, a carriage path 3 is formed
which extends in a longitudinal direction to carry a card. As shown
in FIG. 4, a card PC is to be carried along this carriage path 3,
the stock portion 2B is closed into the body frame 2A and the
substrate mounted frame 2C is immovably attached to the body frame
2A, to form a gap for carriage of a card, forming the carriage path
3. Therefore, this carriage path 3 is typically arranged not to be
exposed to the outside.
[0057] Card carrying-in portions 3A, 3B are formed respectively on
the body frame 2A and the substrate mounted frame 2C, so as to
agree with the carriage path 3. When the stock portion 2B is closed
into the body frame 2A and the substrate mounted frame 2C is
mounted on the body frame 2A, the card carrying-in portions 3A, 3B
form a slit-shaped card insertion slot 4. As shown in FIG. 1, the
card PC is inserted inside at the slit-shaped insertion slot 4
along a direction of an arrow A. It should be noted that control
walls 3D for controlling both sides of the card inserted from the
insertion slot 4 are formed on the card carrying-in portions 3A,
3B, and the card is guided onto the carriage path 3 in the state of
being positioned by the control walls 3D.
[0058] The stock portion 2B is provided with the function of
stocking cards carried in onto the carriage path 3 from the
insertion slot 4, and cards that move along the carriage path 3 are
housed so as to be sequentially stacked from the bottom of the
stock portion. It is to be noted that a specific configuration and
operation of the stock portion 2B are described later.
[0059] The front edge side of the stock portion 2B is provided with
a lock shaft 6 that can be latched to the body frame 2A. This lock
shaft 6 is biased toward the rear side by a bias spring or the
like. Pulling the lock shaft 6 toward the insertion slot 4 side
(direction of an arrow B) releases the locked state of the stock
portion 2B and the body frame 2A (both frames being in the closed
state) so that the stock portion 2B comes into an open state (see
FIG. 2).
[0060] In the body frame 2A, there are installed a shutter
mechanism for preventing insertion of an additional card, a
carriage mechanism for carrying a card, a housing drive mechanism
for housing a card moving along the carriage path 3 into the stock
portion 2B, a drop prevention mechanism for holding a card so as to
prevent the card from dropping when a card is discharged from the
insertion slot 4, and some other mechanisms.
[0061] In the following, configurations and operations of a variety
of drive mechanisms installed in the body frame 2A are specifically
described.
As To Shutter Mechanism
[0062] In the body frame 2A, a shutter mechanism 10 is installed
which prevents the user from erroneously inserting an additional
card during card processing. The configuration of this shutter
mechanism 10 is described with reference to the above-mentioned
FIG. 1 to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 to FIG. 11. It is to be noted that FIG.
6 is an enlarged view of main parts of FIG. 5, FIG. 7 is a
perspective view showing a configuration of an oscillating member
(first oscillating member) constituting the shutter mechanism, and
FIG. 8 to FIG. 11 are views sequentially showing operations of the
oscillating member when a card moves from the insertion slot.
[0063] The shutter mechanism 10 has an oscillating member 12
oscillatably supported with respect to the body frame 2A via a
shaft 11. The oscillating member 12 of the present embodiment is
oscillatably supported on one side wall side of the carriage path
3, and extends in the card carrying direction, to be integrally
formed of a synthetic resin material so as to be elastically
transformed. In addition, the shaft 11 is integrally formed with
the oscillating member 12 on the side slightly behind the
center.
[0064] In the oscillating member 12, the shaft 11 is set to a
bearing 2a projected to the rear side of the carriage path 3 of the
body frame 2A, and a substantially M-shaped cover 13 is installed
over the shaft 11 so that the oscillating member 12 is oscillatably
supported against the body frame 2A. Namely, the oscillating member
12 can be mounted onto or demounted from the body frame 2A by a
simple operation, and a load applied on the oscillating member can
be alleviated by the substantially M-shaped cover 13.
[0065] Further, a closing portion 12c that makes the insertion slot
4 closable is formed on one end side of the oscillating member 12,
and a projecting/withdrawing portion 12d capable of projecting and
withdrawing from the carriage path 3 is formed on the other end
side of the oscillating member 12. As shown in FIG. 3, the closing
portion 12c is capable of projecting and withdrawing from an
opening 2b formed in the vicinity of the insertion slot 4 of the
body frame 2A (region of the card carrying-in portion 3A), and the
projecting/withdrawing portion 12d is capable of projecting and
withdrawing from an opening 2c formed on the front end side of the
stock portion 2B.
[0066] The oscillating member 12 is supported such that the closing
portion 12c constantly opens the insertion slot 4 (in a state where
the closing portion 12c is depressed into the opening 2b), and in
this state, the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d on the other end
side projects from the surface of the carriage path 3. In order to
give such a state, a pressing spring 14 is interposed between the
oscillating member 12 at a position ahead of the shaft 11 and the
rear surface of the body frame 2A, to bias the closing portion 12c
in a direction to be constantly depressed into the opening 2b. A
hole is formed in the oscillating member 12, and the pressing
spring 14 is in the state of being held in the hole.
[0067] Further, the insertion slot side of the oscillating member
12 is arranged to be bendable along the card carrying direction.
When the front end side of a card moving along the carriage path 3
presses the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d, the closing portion
12c of the oscillating member 12 in a bent state comes into contact
with the surface of the rear end side of the card. Namely, with the
oscillating member 12 bent, a large load is not applied to the
moving card even when the closing portion 12c comes into contact
therewith, thereby preventing the closing portion 12c from damaging
the card and being resistance during carriage of the card.
[0068] In this case, a notch depression 12e is formed on the
oscillating member 12 so that the oscillating member 12 is more
easily bent when the closing portion 12c comes into contact with
the moving card. This notch depression 12e is formed with a
predetermined depth on the surface of the oscillating member 12 on
the body frame 2A side ahead of the shaft 11, in a direction
orthogonal to the shaft direction so that the closing portion 12c
side can be easily bent downward. Namely, the front side including
the closing portion 12c with the notch depression 12e as a
supporting point can be easily bent in the direction to be
depressed into the opening 2b, when the top of the closing portion
12c comes into contact with the surface of the card. It is to be
noted that, other than formation of the notch depression 12e, as
the means of bending the oscillating member 12, for example, the
front side of the oscillating member 12 may be formed of a flexible
material or the like.
[0069] Thereby, the oscillating member 12 becomes able to make the
closing portion 12c and the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d
formed on the respective ends thereof simultaneously come into
contact with the card surface, and as shown in FIG. 8 to FIG. 11,
it becomes possible to form the oscillating member 12 shorter than
the length of the card in the carrying direction.
[0070] Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the closing portion 12c is
formed in the shape of a substantially right-angle triangle in a
side view, and has: a card insertion preventing face 12c' rising at
a substantially right angle with the carriage path 3; and an
inclined face 12c'' rising toward the insertion slot 4 side.
Namely, with such a shape, insertion of an additional card is
reliably prevented when the insertion slot 4 is closed, and in
discharge of the card from inside, smooth movement of a card is
realized so that the closing portion 12c does not hinder the
movement.
[0071] It is to be noted that as shown in the enlarged view in FIG.
7, the card insertion preventing face 12c'' is preferably inclined
at a predetermined angle (.theta.=the order of 5 degrees) such that
the oscillating member 12 can move upward when the card PC abuts
thereagainst. With such inclination formed, the oscillating member
12 is shifted upward, which is the closing direction (arrow
direction), upon abutting of the card PC so as to reliably prevent
insertion of an additional card.
[0072] Further, as shown in FIG. 7, an inclined face 12d' in the
shape of a substantially triangle in a side view is formed on the
projecting/withdrawing portion 12d. Namely, with such a shape, when
the card moves in either direction, smooth movement of the card is
realized, and hence the card does not get stuck with the
projecting/withdrawing portion 12d.
[0073] Moreover, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8 to
FIG. 11, a contact portion 2f against which a base 12f of the
closing portion 12c abuts is formed on the rear surface side of the
carriage path 3 of the body frame 2A. This contact portion 2f is
provided so as to come into contact with the closing portion 12c
from inside when the closing portion 12c projects from the carriage
path 3, thereby improving the strength of the closing portion 12c
at the time of closing.
[0074] Next, an operation of the oscillating member 12 constituting
the shutter mechanism 10 is described with reference to FIG. 8 to
FIG. 11.
[0075] Initially, the oscillating member 12 of the shutter
mechanism 10 described above is in a state where, with the shaft 11
as the center, the closing portion 12c is depressed below the
carriage path 3. This state is kept by a position that the shaft 11
supports the oscillating member 12 as well as the bias force of the
pressing spring 14. When the card PC is inserted from the insertion
slot 4 in this state, a card detection sensor 15A (first sensor)
installed on the carriage path 3 shown in FIG. 4 detects insertion
of the card PC, and a drive motor constituting a later-described
carriage mechanism is rotationally driven, to carry the card PC
inside with the carriage belt 25.
[0076] At a stage where passage of the rear end of the carried-in
card PC is detected by the first sensor 15A, the operation of the
carriage mechanism is stopped to temporarily stop the card PC. FIG.
4 shows a state where the card PC has been stopped, and at this
position (information processing position), a reader-writer, not
shown, is driven to execute information reading/writing processing
on the card PC.
[0077] As shown in FIG. 9, when the card PC passes through the
first sensor 15A and is carried by the carriage mechanism toward
the information processing position, the front end of the card PC
engages with the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d of the
oscillating member 12, which is projecting from the opening 2c of
the carriage path 3. Since, as described above, the inclined face
12d' is formed on the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d as shown
in FIG. 7, the card PC is carried further inside while shifting the
projecting/withdrawing portion 12d downward.
[0078] At this time, as shown in FIG. 9, the closing portion 12c
rises as the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d is pressed down, to
come into contact with the card PC being carried. As described
above, the oscillating member 12 is arranged to be bendable along
the card PC carrying direction, and the closing portion 12c of the
oscillating member 12 in the bent state comes into contact with the
surface of the rear end portion side of the card. Since, as
described above, the closing portion 12c side of the oscillating
member 12 is easily bent downward due to the notch depression 12e
and the oscillating member 12 is biased downward by bias force of
the pressing spring 14, even when the closing portion 12c comes
into contact with the card PC being carried, a large load is not
applied to the moving card PC even when the closing portion 12c
comes into contact therewith, thereby preventing the closing
portion 12c from damaging the card PC and being large resistance
during carriage of the card.
[0079] When the card PC is carried further inside and the rear end
of the card passes through the first sensor 15A and is carried to
the information processing position as described above, the closing
portion 12c in the bent state rises as the projecting/withdrawing
portion 12d of the oscillating member 12 is pressed down, to close
the insertion slot 4, as shown in FIG. 10. Namely, when the card PC
is carried to the information processing position, the oscillating
member 12 constituting the above described shutter mechanism brings
the insertion slot 4 into the state of blocking insertion of an
additional card.
[0080] In the shutter closed state shown in FIG. 10, since, as
described above, the base 12f of the closing portion 12c is in
contact with the contact portion 2f provided on the rear surface
side of the carriage path 3 of the body frame 2A, the strength of
the closing portion 12c in shutter closing improves. Namely, since
the closing portion 12c is in the state of being in contact with
the contact portion 2f for enforcement and hence the closing
intensity improves, even when the additional card is intended to be
inserted, such insertion of an additional card is reliably
prevented.
[0081] When the card PC is collected to a later-described stock
portion 2B, the card PC is carried further inside to a stock
position shown in FIG. 11. At this time, the rear end of the card
PC leaves the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d, and the
projecting/withdrawing portion 12d thereby rises. This brings the
closing portion 12c on the opposite side into the state of being
depressed below the carriage path 3, to constantly open the
insertion slot 4. Needless to say, even after the card PC is
returned to the user as it is by the carriage mechanism, the
oscillating member 12 of the shutter mechanism 10 comes into the
state shown in FIG. 11, where the insertion slot 4 is kept open so
that a new card can be inserted.
[0082] It is to be noted that, on the carriage path 3 of the body
frame 2A, a second sensor 15B is installed on the downstream side
of the first sensor 15A, to detect conditions (carriage state and
direction) of the card. Further, a third sensor 15C that detects an
operation of the oscillating member 12 is installed on the rear
surface of the body frame 2A, to detect the end of the read/write
operation as well as completion of carriage of the card PC to a
later-described stock portion 2B. In this case, as well known, the
first sensor 15A and the second sensor 15B are each configured to
have a light emitting portion and a light receiving portion which
detect passage of the card, and the third sensor 15C is installed
in the vicinity of the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d of the
oscillating member 12 and is provided with a light-emitting portion
and a light-receiving portion which detect an operation of the
projecting/withdrawing portion 12d when moving up or down.
[0083] According to the above-mentioned shutter mechanism 10, when
the card PC is inserted into the insertion slot 4 and then carried
by the carriage mechanism, the front end side of the card engages
with the projecting/withdrawing portion 12d to oscillate the
oscillating member 12. With the oscillating member 12 oscillated in
this manner, the closing portion 12c formed on the insertion slot
side closes the insertion slot 4, thereby bringing the insertion
slot 4 into the state of preventing additional insertion of a new
card during the card PC processing operation. Further, even if the
closing portion 12c moves in a direction to close the insertion
slot 4, to come into contact with the surface of the card PC being
carried before the rear end of the card passes through the
insertion slot 4, contact force generated when the closing portion
12c comes into contact with the card surface is alleviated because
the oscillating member 12 is configured to be bendable as described
above, thereby preventing damage on the card surface. In
particular, the notch depression 12e formed on the oscillating
member 12 can make the oscillating member to be more bendable, to
allow reliable alleviation of contact force of the closing portion
12c on the card so that damage on the card surface can be reliably
prevented.
[0084] This eliminates the need for adjusting the length of the
carriage direction of the oscillating member 12 based upon the
length of the card in the carrying direction, thereby allowing
reduction in size of the processor body. Specifically, it becomes
possible to set the length of the oscillating member 12 shorter
than the length of the card in the carrying direction, so as to
reduce the processor body in size by the length by which the
oscillating member 12 is set shorter.
[0085] It is to be noted that, as shown in FIG. 4, a wall-shaped
rib 80 is projectingly formed ahead of the side of the closing
portion 12c on the surface of the carriage path 3. With such a rib
formed, it is possible to reliably prevent double insertion of
cards even when the card is thin with respect to a gap of the
carriage path 3.
As To Carriage Mechanism
[0086] In the body frame 2A, a carriage mechanism 20 is installed
which carries a card inserted into the insertion slot 4 toward the
inside of the processor. The configuration of this carriage
mechanism is described with reference to the above-mentioned FIG. 1
to FIG. 5 and FIG. 12 to FIG. 15. It is to be noted that FIG. 12 is
a view showing a configuration of a roller, FIG. 13 is an enlarged
perspective view of a fixing member that rotatably holds a roller
constituting a carriage mechanism, FIG. 14 is a view showing a
state where the roller is held between a pair of fixing members,
and FIG. 15A and FIG. 15B are views each showing a fixing member in
which the position of the central shaft holding portion has been
changed.
[0087] The carriage mechanism 20 of the present embodiment is
configured to be able to carry a card inserted from the insertion
slot 4 along an insertion direction A and to be able to carry a
card located inside the processor body toward the insertion slot 4
side. The carriage mechanism 20 is provided with: a drive motor 21
as a drive source installed on the body frame 2A (see FIG. 5); and
the carriage belt 25 which is rotationally driven by the drive
motor 21, to be exposed to the surface of the carriage path 3 and
extends along the carriage direction.
[0088] The carriage belt 25 is wound around a rotating roller 22
installed on the drive shaft 22a rotatably driven by the drive
motor 21 and a roller 23 installed at a predetermined spacing along
the carriage path 3. The carriage belt 25 with its surface exposed
to the carriage path 3 has the function of carrying the card placed
thereon. It is to be noted that, as shown in FIG. 3, the rollers 23
are installed at four places with predetermined spacing along the
carriage direction, in a substantially central region of the
carriage path 3 of the body frame 2A.
[0089] As shown in FIG. 5, the rotating roller 22 is provided at
the central part of a drive shaft 22a rotatably supported by the
body frame 2A in a direction orthogonal to the card carrying
direction. A gear 22b fixed to the end of the drive shaft 22a is
meshed with an output gear 21a fixed to the output shaft of the
drive motor 21, to rotationally drive the drive shaft 22a.
[0090] Further, the roller 23 in the state of being rotatably held
by the fixing member 24 is installed at a predetermined position of
the carriage path 3. In the following, configurations of the roller
23 and the fixing member 24 are described with reference to FIG. 12
to FIG. 14.
[0091] The roller 23 is integrally formed using a synthetic resin
such as POM, and as shown in FIG. 12A, the roller 23 is provided
with a column portion 23a to be wound with the carriage belt 25 and
a central shaft 23b projecting at the central part of each side of
the column portion 23a, the roller 23 being formed shorter than the
width direction length of the card. It is to be noted that the
roller 23 may have a two-piece configuration formed of a column
portion 23A and a central shaft 23B as shown in FIG. 12B. Namely,
the column portion 23A and the central shaft 23B are integrally
formed using the synthetic resin such as POM, and the central shaft
23B is fitted into a central hole 23C formed in the column portion
23A to constitute the roller 23 so that the roller 23 can be
smoothly rotated.
[0092] Further, as is the roller 23, the fixing member 24 is
integrally formed using the synthetic resin such as POM, and as
shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, the fixing member 24 is configured to
rotatably hold the central shaft 23b of the roller 23 and be
installable by one-hand into the body frame 2A while in the state
of holding the roller 23. Specifically, the fixing member 24 is
arranged to be inserted into a depression 3a previously formed on
the surface portion of the carriage path 3, and fixed thereto and
provided with: a body 24A which is formed in the shape of a
substantially rectangular prism and in which a central shaft
holding portion 24a for rotatably holding the central shaft 23b of
the roller 23 is formed; and a transforming portion 24B in
substantially U-shape which is elastic-transformably integrated
with the body 24A.
[0093] In FIG. 13, the transforming portion 24B is elastically
transformable in an arrow direction D1, and a retaining flange 24b
is integrally formed on the surface of the outside wall of the
transforming portion 24B. Further, the central shaft holding
portion (holding hole) 24a is in the state of being closed by the
inside wall of the transforming portion 24B.
[0094] As shown in FIG. 14, a pair of fixing members 24 having the
above-mentioned configuration is prepared, and the central shaft
23b on each side of the roller 23 is inserted into the central
shaft holding portion (holding hole) 24a formed in the body 24A of
each of the fixing members 24, and in such an incorporated state,
each of the fixing members 24 is inserted (pressure-inserted) into
each of the depressions 3a of the carriage path 3. As described
above, the depression 3a into which the fixing member 24 can be
pressure-inserted and a depression in which the held roller 23 is
to be located are formed at predetermined positions on the carriage
path 3, and the fixing member 24 is inserted into the depression
3a, bending the transforming portion 24B formed on the body toward
the roller central side (in a direction of an arrow D1 in FIG. 14).
In this inserting operation, the retaining flange 24b eventually
passes over the edge of the depression 3a and the transforming
portion 24B returns to its initial position, whereby the fixing
member 24 comes into the state of being prevented from slipping out
and held by the retaining flange 24b.
[0095] According to the above-mentioned configuration, while in the
state of being held by the fixing member 24, the roller 23
constituting the carriage mechanism can be installed by a one-touch
operation (a simple pressure-insertion operation) into the
depression (installation portion) 3a formed on the card carriage
path of the body frame 2A; thus, incorporating the rollers 23 into
the body frame 2A becomes easy so that manufacturing cost can be
reduced.
[0096] In particular, in the configuration of the present
embodiment, the fixing member 24 is provided with the transforming
portion 24B that is elastically transformable, and the fixing
member 24 is arranged to be fixed such that force is applied to the
transforming portion 24B in a direction (direction of the arrow D1
in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14) along the central shaft of the roller.
Since the direction D1 in which the force is applied is a direction
orthogonal to the direction in which the roller 23 rotates (card
carrying direction A), the fixing member 24 hardly moves with
rotation of the roller 23, and the fixed state of the fixing member
24 thus becomes strong. Namely, movement of the roller 23 in the
card carrying direction (direction A) can be suppressed so as to
realize stable card carriage.
[0097] Further, in the above-mentioned configuration, the roller 23
is held between a pair of fixing members 24, and the direction D1
in which the transforming portions 24B for removing the fixing
members 24 elastically transform are directions toward the center
of the roller as shown in FIG. 14. This configuration enables the
transforming portions 24B of the pair of fixing members 24 to be
elastically transformed by being picked up so that the pair of
fixing members 24 can be removed from the body frame 2A; it is
thereby possible to attempt improvement in maintenance
properties.
[0098] Further, in the above-mentioned configuration, since the
fixing member 24 has the central shaft holding portion 24a in which
the central shaft 23b of the roller 23 is rotatably installed, only
changing this position allows positional adjustment of the roller
in its height direction. Namely, as shown in FIG. 15A and FIG. 15B,
the position of the roller 23 can be adjusted by a simple operation
performed such that a plurality of kinds of fixing members 24 with
the position of the central shaft holding portion 24a changed
therein are prepared and the prepared fixing members 24 are
installed in the body frame 2A. This facilitates positional
adjustment of the roller 23, and it is thereby possible to attempt
improvement in maintenance properties.
[0099] As for the roller 23 and the fixing member 24 having the
above-mentioned configurations, a diameter D of the roller 23
(column portion 23a) is preferably formed larger than dimensions of
the fixing member 24, specifically a height H as the direction of
pressure-insertion.
[0100] With the roller 23 and the fixing member 24 set in such a
dimensional relationship, the roller 23 (column portion 23a)
becomes larger in the height direction than the fixing member 24
when the roller 23 is incorporated into the fixing member 24.
Therefore, when these are installed on the carriage path 3, the
roller 23 projects from the carriage surface while the surface
position of the carriage belt 25 wound around the roller 23 can
also be higher than the position of the fixing member 24.
Therefore, it is possible to prevent the card carried to the
carriage path 3 from coming into contact with the fixing member 24
so as to reliably prevent clogging with the card, and the like.
[0101] As shown in FIG. 2, the pinch rollers 101, 102 installed on
the substrate mounted frame 2C are oppositely arranged at positions
of the rotating roller 22 and the roller 23 installed on the
insertion slot side, and a card inserted into the insertion slot 4
is carried through a nip portion between the pinch rollers 101, 102
and the carriage belt 25. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a pressure
plate on which the card PC is to be placed (the card placed on the
pressure plate) is arranged to be opposed to positions of three
rollers 23 on the downstream side, when the stock portion 2B is
closed.
As To Stock Portion, Housing Drive Mechanism, And the Like
[0102] In the body frame 2A, there are installed: the stock portion
2B that collects a fully used card and houses a card to be issued
according to need; and a housing drive mechanism 40 that is
activated so as to house a card into the stock portion 2B. The
configurations of these stock portion 2B and housing drive
mechanism 40 are described with reference to the above-mentioned
FIG. 1 to FIG. 6 and FIG. 16 to FIG. 25. It is to be noted that
FIG. 16 is a view of a stock portion seen from the insertion slot
side, FIG. 17 is a view showing a state where a card is housed in
the stock portion, FIG. 18A is a plan view showing a configuration
of an oscillating member (second oscillating member) that
constitutes a housing drive mechanism, FIG. 18B is a side view
thereof, and FIG. 19 to FIG. 25 are views sequentially showing
functions of the second oscillating member and the stock portion
associated with carriage of the card.
[0103] As described above, the stock portion 2B is rotatably
arranged on the base installed on the back side of carriage
direction, with respect to the body frame 2A, and is typically in a
closed state as shown in FIG. 1.
[0104] The stock portion 2B is provided with a body 30 formed in
box shape so as to house a predetermined number of cards PC (the
order of ten cards in the present embodiment). As shown in FIG. 16
and FIG. 17, a wall portion (front wall) 30a on the insertion slot
side of the body 30 is formed in the shape of a substantial
projection seen from the insertion slot side; when the body 30 is
closed into the body frame 2A, a gap G through which one card can
pass is formed between the body 30 and the surface 3c of the
carriage path 3. A projecting portion 30b is formed on the front
wall 30a, and in issuing a card from the stock portion 2B (body
30), only a card on the carriage path 3 surface side (top card) can
be discharged because cards under the first card abut against the
projecting portion 30b.
[0105] It is to be noted that cards stacked and housed inside the
body 30 are in a state where the top card is in surface contact
with the above-mentioned carriage belt 25 of the carriage
mechanism.
[0106] Inside the body 30, a pressure plate 35 (schematically shown
in FIG. 19 to FIG. 25) having substantially the same dimensions as
those of the opening of the body 30 is arranged, and this pressure
plate 35 is in the state of being constantly biased to the carriage
path side by a bias spring 31 installed on each sidewall 30c of the
body 30. In this case, an attachment position P1 of the bias spring
31 pressing the pressure plate 35, with respect to the pressure
plate is set to the central position of the longitudinal direction
(card carrying direction) of each side wall 30c of the body 30. As
thus described, installation of the bias spring 31 that presses the
pressure plate 35 at the central position of each side wall 30c
permits application of stable pressure to the pressure plate 35,
and allows an increase in number of cards to be housed as compared
with the configuration in which a pressure spring is installed
inside the body 30.
[0107] Further, each side wall 30c of the body 30 is provided with
two nails 32, which hold the card PC so as to prevent dropping
thereof, at a predetermined spacing in the longitudinal direction.
The nail 32 is formed by bending in L shape the front end side of a
rectangular fitting 32a that is attached to the surface side of
each wall portion 30c.
[0108] In the above-mentioned body frame 2A, the housing drive
mechanism 40 is installed, which, when a card inserted from the
insertion slot is fully used, cooperates with the card carrying
operation performed by the carriage belt 25, to house the card into
the body 30 of the stock portion. This housing drive mechanism has
the function of performing a press-up operation on the pressure
plate 35 in housing a card without installation of an electric
component. In the following, the configuration of the housing drive
mechanism 40 is described.
[0109] The housing drive mechanism 40 has the oscillating member 42
(hereinafter referred to as a second oscillating member 42 to be
distinguished from the oscillating member 12 of the shutter
mechanism described above) oscillatably supported via a shaft 41
with respect to the body frame 2A. As shown in FIG. 3, the second
oscillating member 42 of the present embodiment extends in the card
carrying direction, and is oscillatably supported by the rear
surface side of the carriage path 3 more inside of the carriage
path 3 (center line side) than the above-mentioned oscillating
member 12. The second oscillating member 42 is integrally formed,
and the shaft 41 is provided on the side slightly behind the
center.
[0110] As shown in FIG. 5, the shaft 41 is installed with respect
to the supporting portion projecting on the rear surface side of
the carriage path 3 of the body frame 2A, and a cover 43 is
installed over the shaft 41 so that the second oscillating member
42 is oscillatably supported at the body frame 2A. Namely, as is
the oscillating member 12, the second oscillating member 42 can be
mounted or demounted from the body frame 2A by a simple
operation.
[0111] On this second oscillating member 42, there are integrally
formed a first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a that can project
and withdraw from the surface of the carriage path 3 on the
insertion slot 4 side and a second projecting/withdrawing portion
42b that can project and withdraw from the surface of the carriage
path 3 on the stock portion 2B side. As shown in FIG. 3, the first
projecting/withdrawing portion 42a can project and withdraw from an
opening 2g formed in the vicinity of the insertion slot 4 of the
body frame 2A, specifically between the insertion slot 4 and the
carriage mechanism 20. The second projecting/withdrawing portion
42b can project and withdraw from an opening 2h formed at the
central position of the stock portion 2B.
[0112] In this case, the second oscillating member 42 and the
opening 2h are configured so that the second projecting/withdrawing
portion 42b can come into contact with a position slightly more
upstream side than a central position P2 of the card PC housed in
the body 30 (the contact position is indicated by virtual slant
lines). Therefore, as shown in FIG. 18A, the second
projecting/withdrawing portion 42b has a shape extended in the
width direction as compared with the first projecting/withdrawing
portion 42a. It is to be noted that, although the second
oscillating member 42 is formed by being bent at the central region
in relation to an installation space and an arrangement position of
the carriage belt as shown in FIG. 18A, the shape of the second
oscillating member 42 can be transformed as appropriate so long as
allowing the second projecting/withdrawing portion 42b to come into
contact with the position slightly more upstream side than the
central position P2 of the card PC housed in the body 30.
[0113] An inclined face gradually rising toward the card carrying
direction is formed on the first projecting/withdrawing portion
42a, being configured to allow smooth movement of the card. Since
it is configured in the present embodiment that the card PC is
inserted inside from the insertion slot 4 and discharged (issued)
from inside via the insertion slot 4, inclined faces 42c, 42c'
gradually rising toward the respective carriage directions are
formed on the respective surface sides of the first
projecting/withdrawing portion 42a. It is to be noted that, as
described later, the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a has a
function as the drop prevention mechanism, preventing dropping of a
card to be discharged from the insertion slot 4. The aspect of
holding a card by this first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a
(holding portion) is described later.
[0114] Further, an inclined face 42d gradually rising toward the
card carrying direction is also formed on the second
projecting/withdrawing portion 42b to allow smooth movement of the
card inserted from the insertion slot 4. The inclined face 42d is
formed on the surface on the insertion slot side. A top 42e of the
inclined face abuts against the pressure plate 35 of the body 30
(the top card, in a case where the cards PC are stacked and housed
on the pressure plate) following the oscillating operation of the
second oscillating member 42, to incline the pressure plate 35 so
that the insertion slot side of the pressure plate 35 rises to form
a gap, as shown in FIG. 20.
[0115] It is to be noted that the second oscillating member 42 is
typically supported in a state where the first
projecting/withdrawing portion 42a projects from the surface of the
carriage path 3, and the second projecting/withdrawing portion 42b
abuts against the pressure plate (or a card stacked thereon).
[0116] Further, in the body frame 2A, a fourth sensor (not shown)
is installed which detects the state of the pressure plate 35 in
the body 30, to detect whether or not a card is housed inside the
body 30.
[0117] Next, the functions of the second oscillating member 42 and
the stock portion 2B associated with carriage of a card are
described with reference to FIG. 19 to FIG. 25.
[0118] In an initial state, the second oscillating member 42 of the
housing drive mechanism 40 is in a state where the
projecting/withdrawing portions 42a, 42b on the respective sides
project from the carriage path 3, with the shaft 41 as the center.
The second projecting/withdrawing portion 42b is in the state of
being in contact with the top card in the stock portion 2B.
[0119] When the card PC is inserted from the insertion slot 4 in
this state, the card detection sensor (first sensor) 15A installed
on the carriage path 3, shown in FIG. 4, detects the insertion, and
the drive motor constituting the carriage mechanism is rotationally
driven; then, as shown in FIG. 20, the card PC is carried inside by
the carriage belt 25. At this time, since the card PC presses down
the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a via the inclined face
42c, the second oscillating member 42 is turned counterclockwise
with the shaft 41 as the center, and the second
projecting/withdrawing portion 42b in contact with the top card
stacked and housed presses up the pressure plate 35 against bias
force of the bias spring 31. Since the second
projecting/withdrawing portion 42b is in contact with a position
slightly more upstream side than the central position P2 of the
card PC as shown in FIG. 17, the pressure plate 35 is inclined with
its upstream side rising, as shown in FIG. 20. Therefore, the card
PC carried by the carriage belt 25 smoothly enters inside the body
30 of the stock portion 2B through the gap G shown in FIG. 16.
[0120] At the stage where passage of the rear end of the card PC to
be carried in is detected by the first sensor 15A, the operation of
the carriage belt 25 is stopped to temporarily stop the card PC
(see FIG. 4 and FIG. 21). As described above, the reader-writer,
not shown, is driven at this position (information processing
position), to execute reading/rewriting of information on the card
PC. At this time, the front end of the card PC is located
immediately before the second projecting/withdrawing portion
42b.
[0121] After the information reading/writing processing on the card
PC, the card PC is housed into the stock portion 2B as it is when
no credit is left in the card PC, and returned to the user when a
credit is left in the card PC.
[0122] Specifically, in the state shown in FIG. 21, when the
reader-writer determines that no credit is left in the card PC, the
carriage belt 25 is rotationally driven so as to continuously carry
the card PC to the body 30 of the stock portion 2B. Subsequently,
the operation of the carriage belt 25 is stopped at a stage where
the card PC is carried to a position shown in FIG. 22, and the card
PC is then stacked and housed on the pressure plate 35 inside the
body 30. On the other hand, when a credit is left in the card PC,
the carriage belt 25 is counter-driven to return the card PC to the
user. At this time, as described above, the card PC discharged from
the insertion slot 4 is held in the state of projecting from the
insertion slot 4 by the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a
provided with the function as the holding portion. It is to be
noted that processing of holding the card PC in the state of
projecting from the insertion slot 4 is the same as processing of
issuing a card from the stock portion 2B described below.
[0123] Here, the processing of issuing a card is described with
reference to FIG. 23 to FIG. 25.
[0124] For example, in a case where a bill is inserted into a bill
processor that is not shown and a card PC with its amount-of-money
information written therein is issued, as shown in FIG. 23, a top
card PC1 (card in contact with the carriage belt 25) among cards
stacked and housed in the stock portion 2B is issued. Namely, the
top card PC1 is in the state of being pressed onto the carriage
belt 25 by a bias force functioned on the pressure plate 35, and
the carriage belt 25 is rotationally driven in this state so that
the card PC1 is carried toward the insertion slot 4 side.
[0125] In this carriage process, the card PC1 is temporarily
stopped at an information processing position shown in FIG. 24, and
the reader-writer is driven at this position so that predetermined
information is written. When this writing processing is finished,
the carriage belt 25 is again rotationally driven, to discharge the
card PC1 from the insertion slot 4. At this time, the operation of
the carriage belt 25 is stopped when the card to be discharged
comes to a predetermined position, specifically a position where
the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a of the second
oscillating member 42 comes into contact with the end region of the
card PC1, as shown in FIG. 25. It is possible to control stopping
of the carriage belt 25 operation for example by detection of the
rear end of the card PC1 by the second sensor 15B shown in FIG. 4,
passage of predetermined time from detection of rotation of the
oscillating member 12 by the third sensor 15C shown in FIG. 6, or
the like.
[0126] According to the second oscillating member 42 configured as
described above, when a card is inserted into the insertion slot 4,
the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a is pressed down and
the second projecting/withdrawing portion 42b thereby rises to
press up cards housed in the stock portion 2B located above the
second projecting/withdrawing portion 42b, allowing the card
carried in to be stacked and housed inside the body 30. Since just
oscillating the second oscillating member 42 associated with the
card carrying operation allows a card to be stacked and housed in
the stock portion 2B, the configuration of the housing drive
mechanism is simplified without providing a drive component, such
as a motor or a cam, and an electrical component as has
conventionally been done. Therefore, destabilization of an
operation to house a card into the stock portion due to a broken
drive component or the like is also suppressed.
[0127] Further, as described above, with the operation of the
carriage belt 25 for carrying the card PC1 thereon in a stopped
state, the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a of the second
oscillating member 42 is provided with a function as the drop
prevention mechanism which stops and holds a card so as not to drop
from the insertion slot 4.
[0128] Namely, as shown in FIG. 25, the second
projecting/withdrawing portion 42b of the second oscillating member
42 is in a state where pressure force downward as indicated by an
arrow functions by the pressure plate 35. Since the second
oscillating member 42 is oscillatably supported with the shaft 41
as the center, the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a comes
into a state where pressure force upward (pressure force F1 that
presses up the card PC1 in the stopped state from the rear side as
shown in FIG. 26) functions. At this time, since the card PC1 is in
a state where its front end has been discharged from the insertion
slot 4 and its upper surface abuts against the card carrying-in
portion 3B as shown in FIG. 27, it is possible to hold the card PC1
in a stable state without dropping even when a center C of the card
PC1 is in the state of having been discharged from an opening end E
of the insertion slot 4. In this state, the card PC1 is easy for
the user to pick up since half of the length direction of the card
PC1 or more projects.
[0129] Further, as described above, arrangement of the first
projecting/withdrawing portion 42a (holding portion) between the
insertion slot 4 and the carriage belt 25 constituting the carriage
mechanism eliminates the need for considering a space inside the
processor body for holding the card PC1 to be discharged, allowing
reduction in size of the processor body. Particularly in the
present embodiment, such a holding portion is provided as another
function of the second oscillating member 42 constituting the
foregoing housing drive mechanism 40, whereby it is possible to
reduce the number of components to simplify the configuration so as
to reduce cost.
[0130] Moreover, the above-mentioned first projecting/withdrawing
portion 42a has the inclined face 42c' gradually rising toward the
card carrying direction, thereby allowing smooth movement of a card
passing through the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a, to
facilitate the card discharging operation.
[0131] It is to be noted that the foregoing holding portion (first
projecting/withdrawing portion 42a) that holds a card is not
limited so long as the holding portion is configured to be
installed between the insertion slot 4 and the carriage mechanism
20, press a card to be discharged, and make this card abut against
the inside region of the opening portion of the insertion slot 4
for holding the card. Therefore, for example, the holding portion
may be configured of a projecting/withdrawing member 42A that
projects and withdraws from the carriage path 3 by a bias spring 50
as shown in FIG. 28 at the position of the first
projecting/withdrawing portion 42a, without having the combined
function of the housing drive mechanism 40 of the stock portion 2B
described above.
[0132] Alternatively, the foregoing first projecting/withdrawing
portion 42a (holding portion) of the second oscillating member 42
may be configured as shown in FIG. 29 to FIG. 31. In these figures,
FIG. 29A is a plan view showing a configuration of the second
oscillating member, FIG. 29B is a side view thereof, FIG. 30A is a
cross-sectional view along the line A-A of FIG. 29A, FIG. 30B is a
cross-sectional view along the line B-B of FIG. 29A, and FIG. 31 is
a front view of a second oscillating member, as well as a view
showing the state of incorporating a roller.
[0133] Although it was configured in the foregoing embodiment that
the inclined faces 42c, 42c' gradually rising toward the respective
face sides of the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a are
formed and a card is smoothly carried due to these inclined faces,
the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a may be configured that
a rotating roller is supported in place of such inclined faces.
Specifically, a depression 51 is formed on the first
projecting/withdrawing portion 42a formed at the front end of the
second oscillating member 42, and at this portion, a roller 52 is
rotatably supported. The roller 52 is integrally formed of a
material that does not damage a card to come into sliding contact
with, such as POM, and a shaft portion 52a projecting at both ends
of the roller 52 is arranged in a supporting portion Sla formed
inside the depression 51 so that the roller 52 is rotatably
supported by the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a.
[0134] As just described, installation of the rotatable roller 52
in the first projecting/withdrawing portion 42a leads to smoother
carriage of a card as well as reduction in contact resistance to
the card, thereby allowing effective prevention of damage on the
card. Further, the card can also be held between such a roller 52
and the card carrying-in portion 3B by the roller 52.
[0135] Moreover, a step 52b is formed at a substantially central
portion of the roller 52, and thereby the periphery of the roller
is configured to have a small diameter portion 52c and a large
diameter portion 52d. In this case, the roller 52 is supported
inside the depression 51 such that the small diameter portion 52c
side is located outside the width direction of the carriage path.
With such a step portion 52b previously formed on the roller 52, it
is possible to prevent the card surface from partially coming into
contact with the region of the small diameter portion 52c when the
card is carried (see FIG. 30A). Namely, the surface of the card may
be provided with a column to write a name in at a previously
determined position, and in a roller without a step, part of the
name may be rubbed and thus erased, but previously forming a step
to provide a small diameter portion as just described allows the
card to be protected such that the name is not rubbed and thus
erased.
[0136] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been
described above, the present invention is not restricted to the
above-mentioned configurations, but can be variously transformed.
For example, control means of controlling a carriage operation in
carrying a card (configuration and arrangement aspect of a sensor
that controls drive timing of the carriage mechanism, and the like)
can be transformed as appropriate. Further, the configuration of
the body in the stock portion, the shape of each oscillating
member, the arrangement aspect of the roller constituting the
carriage mechanism, and the like, can also be transformed as
appropriate.
[0137] The card processor of the present invention is not
restricted to a game media lending machine, but can be incorporated
into a variety of devices that provide commercial products and
service. Further, the card processor of the present invention is
configured to comprise the stock portion that collects a card and
allows issuance of a card, but is also applicable to a card
processor where, simply, a card is inserted, its information is
read and the card is then discharged, or a device that issues a
prepaid card.
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