WO1989001209A1 - Coin discriminator - Google Patents
Coin discriminator Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- WO1989001209A1 WO1989001209A1 PCT/GB1988/000592 GB8800592W WO8901209A1 WO 1989001209 A1 WO1989001209 A1 WO 1989001209A1 GB 8800592 W GB8800592 W GB 8800592W WO 8901209 A1 WO8901209 A1 WO 8901209A1
- Authority
- WO
- WIPO (PCT)
- Prior art keywords
- receiver coil
- coil
- coin
- pulse
- voltage
- Prior art date
Links
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
- G07D—HANDLING OF COINS OR VALUABLE PAPERS, e.g. TESTING, SORTING BY DENOMINATIONS, COUNTING, DISPENSING, CHANGING OR DEPOSITING
- G07D5/00—Testing specially adapted to determine the identity or genuineness of coins, e.g. for segregating coins which are unacceptable or alien to a currency
- G07D5/02—Testing the dimensions, e.g. thickness, diameter; Testing the deformation
Definitions
- This invention relates to a coin discriminator.
- coin is intended to include coin-like items such as bogus coins, tokens and metal blanks.
- a coin discriminator comprises an emitter coil and a receiver coil positioned on opposite sides of the coin path, the coils in transverse cross-section, that is in planes which include turns of the coil, being of elongate form, the adjacent ends of the coils facing each other such that the projected area of the end face of the emitter coil i ⁇ substantially superimpcsed on the end face of the receiver coil, means for applying a transient voltage pulse with a large high frequency component to the emitter coil, and means for measuring the amplitude of the voltage pulse induced in the receiver coil.
- the transient voltage pulse applied to the emitter coil has frequency components of at least substantially 500 kHz, and preferably at least substantially.! MHz, such that the coin will substantially block any inductive coupling between the coils in the region where the coin masks the emitter coil.
- the emitter coil is preferably subjected to a series of discrete voltage pulses, an evaluation of the transverse dimension of the passing coin being made for each pulse.
- the measuring means is therefore arranged to detect the maximum value of the transverse dimension, (the minimum output of the receiver coil) .
- This is preferably achieved by tracking the output of the receiver coil, but the tracking preferably needs to take account of noise which may result from various factors, and preferably it is desirable that the discriminator can deal with touching coins. It will be appreciated that with touching coins the coil output will not rise back to a full maximum when the first coin just clears the flux lines, since the second coin will begin to intercept the flux lines.
- a track and store unit which can be switched by software such that either the most recent maximum or the most recent minimum of the detector coil signal is stored, the switching, from storing the most recent maximum to storing the most recent minimum, being performed when the signal has fallen by a first predetermined amount below the stored maximum value, and the switching-back, from storing the most recent minimum to storing the most recent maximum, being performed when the signal has risen again by a second predetermined amount above the stored minimum value, and the stored minimum value of the signal immediately prior to said switching-back being used as the measure of the coin diameter.
- the noise in the system is accommodated, since the stored minimum value is not accepted as being the true minimum value until the signal has risen again by the second predetermined amount, which amount is made sufficiently large to distinguish from noise fluctuations in the signal.
- Figure 1 is a plan view showing the passage of a coin between a pair of coils of the discriminator;
- Figure 2 is a side view of one of the coils of Figure 1;
- Figure 3 is a block diagram of the circuit of the discriminator
- Figure 4 is a plot of the receiver coil signal showing the effect of single coins passing between the coils
- Figure 5 is a plot similar to Figure 4 showing the effect produced by two touching coins followed by a single smaller coin
- Figure 6 is a flow diagram of the program controlling the analysis of the receiver coil signal for differentiating between single coins and touching coins.
- the coin discriminator shown in the drawings comprises an emitter coil 1 and a receiver coil 2 positioned on opposite sides of a coin path 3 bounded on one side by a surface 3' across which the coins slide or roll.
- the coils 1 and 2 are of elongate form and are arranged so that adjacent ends of the coils face each other across the coin path 3.
- Coil 1 is conveniently encapsulated in the plastics material of surface 3 1 during moulding.
- Each of the emitter and receiver coils 1 and 2 is produced by winding wire on a former 4, the cross-sectional dimensions of which determine the transverse cross-sectional dimensions of the coil.
- each former 4 is 6mm wide and 22mm high, and the coils are wound to a thickness of 2mm.
- the coins are arranged to pass along the coin path 3 with one edge on a datum line 5.
- the coils 1 and 2 are preferably positioned such that their projected area onto the coin path is spaced from the datum line 5, since the position of one edge of the coin is already known. This enables a maximum range of coin diameters to be measured with coils of specified cross-sectional dimensions. The spacing of the coils from the datum line must not, however, be so great as to permit a coin of the smallest coin type to be measured to pass undetected.
- the direction of the maximum transverse dimension of each coil is arranged to be substantially at right angles to the datum line 5.
- the coins are arranged to roll along a surface which provides the datum line 5 , but in a high speed machine they may be driven by a belt.
- the pulsing of one of the coils 1,2, for example coil 1 is controlled by a microcomputer 6 through a pulse generator or drive circuit 7 and transistor switch 8, the drive circuit 7 being arranged to produce a train of 10 ⁇ s pulses with a pulse period of 600 us.
- Coil 2 acts as the receiver coil and is connected through a rectifier 9 to an A/D converter 10, the rectifier 9 providing the peak value of the induced voltage in the receiver coil 2.
- the drive circuit 7 and transistor switch 8 are arranged to provide sharp-edged pulses having frequency components in the 1 H ⁇ region.
- the peak value of the voltage induced in receiver coil 2 when a coin is positioned between the coils is a measure of the length of the chord of that part of the coin which partially shades coil 2 from the influence of the transmitter coil 1.
- Figure 4 shows a plot of the rectified receiver coil signal as seen by the A/D converter 10 when a single large coin passes between the coils, followed in due course by a further large coin which just enters between the coils.
- the receiver coil signal drops from level 11 down to a minimum signal level at point 12 when the coin is positioned symmetrically of the coils 1,2 and then rises up to the original level at point 13 as the coin leaves the projected area of the coils.
- Figure 5 shows that two large touching coins produce a rectified receiver coil signal which has two minima at points 14 and 16 corresponding to large coins being individually positioned symmetrically of the coils 1,2, with an intervening maximum at point 15, but it should be noted that the maximum at point 15 is at a smaller signal level than the minimum at point 17 produced by a small coin in the position in which it produces maximum shading of the receiver coil 2.
- Figure 5 shows that a simple level detector circuit would be confused by the signals at 15 and 17, and it is accordingly desirable to be able to recognise this situation, and make diameter measurements at points 14,16 and 17 only.
- the microcomputer 6 is programmed to track the rectified receiver coil signal, so as to follow the signal and identify the minima 12,14,16,17, etc.
- the coil signal will also be subject to noise due to bouncing and wobbling of coins and to non-roundness of some coins. It will not, therefore, in general be sufficient to identify an apparent turning point in the curve.
- point 12 is the minimum coil signal which corresponds to the coin diameter until the coil signal has risen by a predetermined threshold amount to point 18.
- the software of unit 6 is arranged to store the most recent minimum value of the coil signal, that is the most recent maximum value of the measured diameter, in the region between points 11' and 18, whereupon once point 18 has been reached the value of coin diameter corresponding to point 12 is taken as the correct diameter measurement for that coin.
- the software is arranged to record instead the most ecent maximum value of the coil signal, in order to seek out a maximum coil signal, to locate points such as 13 and 15.
- FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram of the software employed to implement the method just described. The diagram is largely self-explanatory but a brief explanation will now be given.
- the block 20 is a flag which can be set or unset to provide the switching from seeking a minimum value of the receiver coil output to seeking a maximum of that output.
- the variable 'COIN' is set at $ff, and accordingly the answer produced by box 20 is NO, and block 23 will accordingly compare the latest diameter (chord) measurement with the currently stored minimum measurement of coil output (MAXDI) .
- the YES output from block 26 causes block 21 to set the flag 20, by setting the variable 'COIN' to zero, so that the next run of the program will result in a YES output from block 20. From then on the point 13 is being sought.
- Box 28 compares the current coil output DIAM with the currently stored value MAXDI and provides a YES output if the receiver coil output is rising, thereby causing box 24 to store the most recent maximum value of coil output as the value MAXDI. When point 13 is reached then the value MAXDI will have been set to the coil voltage as measured at point 13.
- the mechanism of setting and unsetting of a flag in box 20 in dependence upon a comparison between a most recent maximum (or minimum) coil output and a threshold amount provides a time-efficient method of tracking the coil output curve, and constitutes a preferable feature of the present invention.
Abstract
Description
Claims
Priority Applications (3)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
DK015690A DK15690A (en) | 1987-07-23 | 1990-01-19 | MOENT SORTING APPARATUS |
NO900298A NO900298D0 (en) | 1987-07-23 | 1990-01-22 | MYNTSKJELNER. |
FI900340A FI95630C (en) | 1987-07-23 | 1990-01-22 | coin sorter |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
GB8717494A GB8717494D0 (en) | 1987-07-23 | 1987-07-23 | Coin discriminator |
GB8717494 | 1987-07-23 |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
WO1989001209A1 true WO1989001209A1 (en) | 1989-02-09 |
Family
ID=10621191
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/GB1988/000592 WO1989001209A1 (en) | 1987-07-23 | 1988-07-21 | Coin discriminator |
Country Status (6)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP0377574A1 (en) |
JP (1) | JPH03500696A (en) |
DK (1) | DK15690A (en) |
FI (1) | FI95630C (en) |
GB (1) | GB8717494D0 (en) |
WO (1) | WO1989001209A1 (en) |
Cited By (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4998610A (en) * | 1988-09-19 | 1991-03-12 | Said Adil S | Coin detector and counter |
DE10140225A1 (en) * | 2001-08-16 | 2003-03-06 | Nat Rejectors Gmbh | Method and device for measuring the diameter of coins |
US6766892B2 (en) | 1996-06-28 | 2004-07-27 | Coinstar, Inc. | Coin discrimination apparatus and method |
US8967361B2 (en) | 2013-02-27 | 2015-03-03 | Outerwall Inc. | Coin counting and sorting machines |
US9022841B2 (en) | 2013-05-08 | 2015-05-05 | Outerwall Inc. | Coin counting and/or sorting machines and associated systems and methods |
US9036890B2 (en) | 2012-06-05 | 2015-05-19 | Outerwall Inc. | Optical coin discrimination systems and methods for use with consumer-operated kiosks and the like |
US9443367B2 (en) | 2014-01-17 | 2016-09-13 | Outerwall Inc. | Digital image coin discrimination for use with consumer-operated kiosks and the like |
Citations (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4286704A (en) * | 1979-04-27 | 1981-09-01 | Coin Controls Limited | Coin-validating arrangement |
US4353453A (en) * | 1980-04-10 | 1982-10-12 | Atn Research & Development Corporation | Valid coin acceptor for coin actuated apparatus |
US4436196A (en) * | 1980-06-20 | 1984-03-13 | Plessey Overseas Limited | Method of and apparatus for assessing coins |
US4660705A (en) * | 1984-06-08 | 1987-04-28 | Tamura Electric Works, Ltd. | Coin discrimination apparatus |
EP0119000B1 (en) * | 1983-02-09 | 1989-04-12 | Cash & Security Equipment Limited | Coin discriminating apparatus |
Family Cites Families (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JPS59111587A (en) * | 1982-12-16 | 1984-06-27 | ロ−レルバンクマシン株式会社 | Money inspector for coin processing machine |
-
1987
- 1987-07-23 GB GB8717494A patent/GB8717494D0/en active Pending
-
1988
- 1988-07-21 WO PCT/GB1988/000592 patent/WO1989001209A1/en active IP Right Grant
- 1988-07-21 EP EP19880906001 patent/EP0377574A1/en not_active Withdrawn
- 1988-07-21 JP JP50608288A patent/JPH03500696A/en active Pending
-
1990
- 1990-01-19 DK DK015690A patent/DK15690A/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 1990-01-22 FI FI900340A patent/FI95630C/en not_active IP Right Cessation
Patent Citations (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4286704A (en) * | 1979-04-27 | 1981-09-01 | Coin Controls Limited | Coin-validating arrangement |
US4353453A (en) * | 1980-04-10 | 1982-10-12 | Atn Research & Development Corporation | Valid coin acceptor for coin actuated apparatus |
US4436196A (en) * | 1980-06-20 | 1984-03-13 | Plessey Overseas Limited | Method of and apparatus for assessing coins |
EP0119000B1 (en) * | 1983-02-09 | 1989-04-12 | Cash & Security Equipment Limited | Coin discriminating apparatus |
US4660705A (en) * | 1984-06-08 | 1987-04-28 | Tamura Electric Works, Ltd. | Coin discrimination apparatus |
Cited By (10)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4998610A (en) * | 1988-09-19 | 1991-03-12 | Said Adil S | Coin detector and counter |
US6766892B2 (en) | 1996-06-28 | 2004-07-27 | Coinstar, Inc. | Coin discrimination apparatus and method |
DE10140225A1 (en) * | 2001-08-16 | 2003-03-06 | Nat Rejectors Gmbh | Method and device for measuring the diameter of coins |
DE10140225C2 (en) * | 2001-08-16 | 2003-08-07 | Nat Rejectors Gmbh | Method and device for measuring the diameter of coins |
US7104384B2 (en) | 2001-08-16 | 2006-09-12 | National Rejectors, Inc. Gmbh | Method and apparatus for measuring the diameter of coins |
US9036890B2 (en) | 2012-06-05 | 2015-05-19 | Outerwall Inc. | Optical coin discrimination systems and methods for use with consumer-operated kiosks and the like |
US9594982B2 (en) | 2012-06-05 | 2017-03-14 | Coinstar, Llc | Optical coin discrimination systems and methods for use with consumer-operated kiosks and the like |
US8967361B2 (en) | 2013-02-27 | 2015-03-03 | Outerwall Inc. | Coin counting and sorting machines |
US9022841B2 (en) | 2013-05-08 | 2015-05-05 | Outerwall Inc. | Coin counting and/or sorting machines and associated systems and methods |
US9443367B2 (en) | 2014-01-17 | 2016-09-13 | Outerwall Inc. | Digital image coin discrimination for use with consumer-operated kiosks and the like |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
DK15690D0 (en) | 1990-01-19 |
EP0377574A1 (en) | 1990-07-18 |
DK15690A (en) | 1990-03-01 |
FI95630B (en) | 1995-11-15 |
GB8717494D0 (en) | 1987-08-26 |
FI900340A0 (en) | 1990-01-22 |
JPH03500696A (en) | 1991-02-14 |
FI95630C (en) | 1996-02-26 |
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