Bill arranger

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6507769
  • Patent Number
    6,507,769
  • Date Filed
    Thursday, March 9, 2000
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, January 14, 2003
    21 years ago
Abstract
The bill arranger of the present invention comprises: a loader for loading bills and feeding the bills one by one; a conveyer for conveying the bills fed from said loader; a discriminating device for discriminating the bills conveyed by said conveyer; a plurality of stackers for stacking the bills, which are conveyed by said conveyer, so that the bills can be removed; an operating device for selecting one of sorting process modes which defines a method of sorting the bills loaded in said loader; a controller for delivering the bills, which are fed from said loader, to one of said stackers, by said conveyer, based on the results of the discrimination by said discriminating device, according to the sorting process mode selected by said operating device; and displays, separately provided for said respective stackers, which can change displayed contents.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The present invention relates to a bill arranger for discriminating bills and sorting them based on the discrimination.




This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 11-64111, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.




2. Description of the Related Art




A conventional bill arranger for discriminating bills and sorting them based on the results of the discrimination is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. Hei 7-21437.




The bill arranger comprises a loader, a conveyer, a discriminating device, a plurality of stackers, and a wrapping device.




The loader loads a number of stacked bills, and sends the bills one by one into the bill arranger.




The discriminating device discriminates the bills sent from the loader into the bill arranger depending on the denominations of the bills.




The conveyer conveys the bills, which the loader sent into the bill arranger, to one of the stackers and the wrapping device, based on the results of the discrimination by the discriminating device.




The stackers stack the bills conveyed from the loader by the conveyer. The stackers are exposed to the outside to allow an operator to remove the bills stacked therein.




The wrapping device stacks a predetermined amount of bills transferred from the loader through the conveyer, and wraps a tape around the stacked bills.




Conventional bill arrangers can not only sort the bills loaded in the loader according to denominations but also perform various types of sorting processes, e.g., sorting bills of the same denomination into obverse bills and reverse bills. The stackers do not always stack bills of the same denomination. Therefore, an operator must keep in mind how the bills are sorted into the stackers. However, since the sorting processes are various, the operator may lose track of how the bills are sorted into the stackers.




BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a bill arranger which allows an operator to easily confirm how bills are sorted into stackers.




To achieve the purpose, the bill arranger of the present invention comprises: a loader for loading bills and feeding the bills one by one; a conveyer for conveying the bills fed from the loader; a discriminating device for discriminating the bills conveyed by the conveyer; a plurality of stackers for stacking the bills, which are conveyed by the conveyer, so that the bills can be removed; an operating device for selecting one of sorting process modes which defines a method of sorting the bills loaded in the loader; a controller for delivering the bills, which are fed from the loader, to one of the stackers, by the conveyer, based on the results of the discrimination by the discriminating device, according to the sorting process mode selected by the operating device; and displays, separately provided for the respective stackers, which can change displayed contents.




When the bills loaded in the loader are fed, the conveyer conveys the bills. While conveying the bills, the bills are discriminated by the discriminating device. Based on the results of the discrimination by the discriminating device, the controller delivers the bills to one of the stackers according to the selected sorting process.




Thus, the bills are stacked in the stackers. The respective stackers have the separate displays. The respective separate displays display how the bills are sorted into the stackers. Even when various sorting processes are selectable, the operator can easily confirm the details of the sorting of the bills stacked in the stackers.




One of a plurality of sorting process modes is selected with the operating device, the controller indicates the respective details of sorting of the stackers according to the selected sorting process mode on the corresponding displays.




The respective separate displays display how the bills are sorted into the stackers. Even when various sorting processes are performed, the operator can easily confirm the details of the sorting of the bills stacked in the stackers according to the selected sorting process mode.




The displays indicate at least one of the number and sum of the bills stacked in the stackers.




Because each display displays at least one of the number and the sum of the bills stacked in the stacker, the operator can easily recognize the respective amounts of the bills stacked in the stackers.




The bill arranger further comprises a general display in common for all the stackers, which can change displayed contents.




The general display displays the total number or the total sum of the bills in all the stackers which is the information common to all the stackers. Thus, the operator can recognize the information common to all the stackers.




The general display indicates at least one of the total number and the total sum of all the bills stacked in the stackers. Thus, the operator can recognize the information common to all the stackers.




The general display indicates one of the total number and the total sum of all the bills stacked in the stackers, and indicates whether the total number or the total sum is selected.




The general display indicates one of the total number and the total sum of all the bills stacked in said stackers, and indicates whether the total number or the total sum is selected. The operator can recognize whether the number or the sum of the bills is displayed.




BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a bill arranger which can prevent bills, which are stacked by stackers, from being inadvertently extracted by an operator.




To achieve the purpose, the bill arranger of the present invention comprises: a loader for loading bills and feeding the bills one by one; a conveyer for conveying the bills fed from the loader; a discriminating device for discriminating the bills conveyed by the conveyer; a plurality of stackers for stacking the bills, which are conveyed by the conveyer, so that the bills can be removed; an operating device for selecting one of the sorting process modes which defines a method of sorting the bills loaded in the loader; and a controller for delivering the bills, which are fed from the loader, to one of the stackers, by the conveyer, based on the results of the discrimination by the discriminating device, according to the sorting process mode selected by the operating device.




The respective stackers have shutters controlled by the controller, the shutters allowing the removal of the stacked bills when the shutters are opened, and preventing the removal of the stacked bills when the shutters are closed.




When the bills loaded in the loader are fed, the conveyer conveys the bills. While conveying the bills, the bills are discriminated by the discriminating device. Based on the results of the discrimination by the discriminating device, the controller delivers the bills to one of the stackers according to the selected sorting process.




Thus, the bills are stacked in the stackers. The respective stackers have the shutters controlled by the controller. When the shutters are opened, the stacked bills can be removed. When the shutters are closed, the bills cannot be removed. Thus, the bills stacked in the stackers are prevented from being inadvertently removed by the operator.




There are two conditions one in which the removal of the bills from the stackers is allowed, and another in which the removal of the bills from the stackers is not allowed. Only when the removal of the bills from the stackers is allowed, are the shutters opened.




Thus, the bills stacked in the stackers are reliably prevented from being inadvertently removed by the operator.




The closed shutters are fixed so that the shutters cannot be opened.




The closed shutters cannot be manually opened. Thus, the bills stacked in the stackers are more reliably prevented from being inadvertently removed by the operator.




Further, the respective stackers have position changers for changing the positions of the stacked bills, the controller controlling the position changers to change the positions of the stacked bills when the shutters are opened.




Thus, the stacked bills, which were hard to remove, become easy to remove. This improves the working efficiency when the operator removes the bills from the stackers.




As the shutters are opened, the position changer changes the positions of the bills.




The same driving source is used to drive the shutters and to drive the position changer for changing the positions of the bills. Thus, the costs are reduced.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 2

is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 3

is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 4

is a cross-sectional side view showing a stacker, whose shutter is closed, in an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 5

is a top view showing the stacker in an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 6

is a cross-sectional front view showing the stacker in an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 7

is a cross-sectional side view showing the stacker in an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention, and particularly, the details of an example of a guide mechanism of the present invention.





FIG. 8

is a cross-sectional side view showing the stacker, whose shutter is opened, in an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 9

is a cross-sectional side view showing the stacker in an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention, and particularly, the details of another example of a guide mechanism of the present invention.





FIG. 10

is a perspective view showing a function display, a first operating unit, and a second operating unit of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 11

is a list showing the functions of keys of an embodiment of the present invention.





FIG. 12

is a diagram showing the displays for function setting of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 13

is a list showing sorting settings of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 14

is a front view showing a separate display of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 15

is a front view showing a general display of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIGS. 16A

to


16


D are diagrams showing examples of the displays of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.

FIG. 16A

shows the display of the number of stacked bills,

FIG. 16B

shows the display of the sum of bills,

FIG. 16C

shows the display of the number of stacked bills, and

FIG. 16D

shows the display of the deficiencies in the batch number.





FIG. 17

is a diagram showing the display of the details of the damaged bills on the function display of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.





FIG. 18

is a diagram showing the display of the details of the false bills on the function display of an embodiment of the bill arranger of the present invention.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION




An embodiment of the bill arranger according to the present invention will be explained with reference to

FIGS. 1

to


18


.




The bill arranger for sorting bills while counting the number thereof comprises a loader


11


, a conveyer


12


, a discriminating device


13


, a releasing device


14


, an operating device


15


, a display


16


, and a controller


17


.




Machine Body




The machine body


10


of the bill arranger has a front face


20


, a rear face


21


, a pair of right and left side faces


22


, a bottom face


24


, and a top face


25


.




The front face


20


extends in the vertical direction.




One of the side faces


22


extends from the left edge of the front face


20


in the rear direction. The other side face


22


extends from the right edge of the front face


20


in the rear direction. Further, both the side faces


22


stand vertically, parallel to each other.




The rear face


21


connects both rear ends of the side faces


22


and is roughly in parallel to the front face


20


.




The bottom face


24


is connected to the bottom edges of the front face


20


, the side faces


22


, and the rear face


21


. This bottom face


24


extends horizontally.




The top face


25


is connected to the upper edges of the front face


20


, the side faces


22


, and the rear face


21


. The top face


25


is inclined so that the rear portion of the top face


25


is higher than the front portion of the top face


25


.




On the lower side of the front face


20


, a main switch


27


is provided. This main switch


27


can be operated by an operator to turn on or off the main power supply to the bill arranger.




Loader




The loader


11


, provided at the front of the machine body


10


, loads a number of stacked bills S. The bills S loaded in the loader


11


are vertically stacked. The loader


11


separates and sends one by one the lowest bill of the stacked bills S into the machine body


10


.




The loader


11


has a loader bottom face


29


, a pair of loader side faces


30


, and a loader rear face


32


.




The loader bottom face


29


extends from the front face


20


in the rear direction, and is inclined so that its rear portion is lower than its front portion.




One of the loader side face


30


is connected to the left side of the loader bottom face


29


, while the other loader side face


30


is connected to the right side of the loader bottom face


29


. The loader side faces


30


are disposed in parallel to the side faces


22


of the machine body


10


.




The loader rear face


32


is disposed between the loader side faces


30


, and is in parallel to the front face


20


of the machine body


10


.




These loader bottom face


29


, the loader side faces


30


, and the loader rear face


32


form a loading space


33


in the front face


20


of the machine body


10


, which is slightly dented toward the rear. The loading space


33


is opened in the upper face


25


of the machine body


33


.




In the loading space


33


, the stacked bills S are loaded so that the longitudinal sides of the bills are aligned in the side-to-side direction. The short sides of the stacked bills S are guided by the loader side faces


30


. The rear side of the stacked bills S is guided by the loader rear face


32


. In this situation, the bills S are stacked in parallel to the loader bottom face


29


. That is, the stacked bills are slightly inclined so that their rear portions are lower than the front portions. At the boundary between the loader bottom face


29


and the loader rear face


32


, a feeding opening


34


is provided. This feeding opening


34


is for feeding the stacked bills S into the machine body


10


.




The loader


11


has a bill feeder


36


at its lower portion. The bill feeder


36


comprises an injecting roller


37


, a feeding roller


38


, a separating roller


39


, and a conveyer drive motor


40


for driving these rollers.




The injecting roller


37


is disposed at the middle point between the front and the rear of the loader bottom face


29


. A part of the injecting roller


37


protrudes upward through the loader bottom face


29


. The injecting roller


37


is rotated and driven by the conveyer drive motor


40


. The injecting roller


37


is in contact with the lowest bill of the stacked bills S loaded in the loading space


33


, and injects this bill into the feeding opening


34


.




The feeding roller


38


is provided below the feeding opening


34


. The separating roller


39


is provided above the feeding roller


38


. The feeding roller


38


is rotated by the conveyer drive motor


40


. The feeding roller


38


comes in contact with the bill injected by the injecting roller


37


, and feeds it into the machine body


10


.




The separating roller


39


comes in contact with the top of a bill which is being moved together with the bill injected by the injecting roller


37


. Then, the upper bill is prevented from being fed into the feeding opening


34


. That is, the separating roller


39


makes bills, other than the bill injected by the injecting roller


37


, remain in the loading space


33


.




Thus, the bill feeder


36


separates and feeds the stacked bills S, loaded in the loading space


33


, one by one into the machine body


10


.




The loader


11


has a bill pressing member


42


at its upper side.




The bill pressing member


42


has a pressing face


43


. The bill pressing member


42


, when it stands, is inserted so as to be flush with the loader rear face


32


of the machine body


10


.




The bill pressing member


42


is rotatable about its lower shaft so that it can fall down toward the front. When the bill pressing member


42


falls down, the pressing face


43


also falls downward to just above the loading bottom face


29


.




Thus, the bill pressing member


42


falls down on the stacked bills and presses them downwardly when there is a small number of stacked bills S in the loading space


33


. The pressing force of the bill pressing member


42


onto the stacked bills S is produced by its own weight.




The bill pressing member


42


presses the top of the stacked bills S, to thereby increase the friction between the lowest bill of the stacked bills S and the injecting roller


37


. As the result, even when there is a small number of the stacked bills S in the loading space


33


, the lowest bill can be securely injected by the injecting roller


37


.




On the other hand, when the bill pressing member


42


rises, the pressing face


43


is aligned with the loader rear face


32


. Thus, the bill pressing member


42


can be retracted from the loading space


33


. When a comparatively large number of stacked bills is loaded in the loading space


33


, the bill pressing member


42


is retracted from the loading space


33


. In this situation, the bill pressing member


42


does not interfere with the stacked bills S loaded on the loader


1


. The bill pressing member


42


rises when in the loading space


33


there are a number of stacked bills S which sufficiently increases the friction between the lowest bill and the injecting roller


37


.




The bill pressing member


42


can be manually raised or pulled down by an operator.




In the loader


11


, a bill detecting sensor


44


is provided. The bill detecting sensor


44


can detect the presence or absence of a bill in the loader


11


. The bill detecting sensor


44


outputs the result of the detection to the controller


17


.




Conveyer




The conveyer


12


can convey the bill fed from the loader


11


. The conveyer


12


conveys the bill so that their longitudinal sides are aligned in the side-to-side direction. The conveyer


12


is controlled by the controller


17


.




The conveyer


12


has a first conveyer path


45


, a second conveyer path


46


, a third conveyer path


47


, a fourth conveyer path


48


, a fifth conveyer path


49


, a sixth conveyer path


50


, a seventh conveyer path


51


, and an eighth conveyer path


52


. These conveyer paths


45


to


52


includes a plurality of rollers, a plurality of conveying belts, and a plurality of guides which are not shown. The conveyer paths


45


to


52


are driven by the conveyer drive motor


40


as well as the bill feeder


36


of the loader


11


.




The first conveyer path


45


is provided in the lower space in the machine body


10


and conveys the bill, which is fed from the loader


11


, from the front to the rear.




The second conveyer path


46


is connected to the end of the first conveyer path


45


. The second conveyer path


46


receives the bill conveyed by the first conveyer path


45


, and conveys the bill from the lower rear space to the upper rear space within the machine body


10


.




The third conveyer path


47


is connected to a first branch point


54


at the end of the second conveyer path


46


. The third conveyer path


47


receives the bill conveyed by the second conveyer path


46


, further conveys it toward the rear of the machine body


10


, and then sends it toward the top.




The fourth conveyer path


48


is connected to the first branch point


54


. The fourth conveyer path


48


receives the bill conveyed by second conveyer path


46


, and conveys it toward the front.




The fifth conveyer path


49


is connected to a second branch point


55


at the end of the fourth conveyer path


48


. The fifth conveyer path


49


receives the bill conveyed by the fourth conveyer path


48


, and conveys it toward the top. The second branch point


55


is nearer to the front than the first branch point


54


.




The sixth conveyer path


50


is connected to the second branch point


55


. The sixth conveyer path


50


receives the bill conveyed by the fourth conveyer path


48


, and conveys it toward the front.




The seventh conveyer path


51


is connected to a third branch point


56


at the end of the sixth conveyer path


50


. The seventh conveyer path


51


receives the bill conveyed by the sixth conveyer path


50


, and conveys it toward the top. The third branch point


56


is nearer to the front than the second branch point


55


.




The eighth conveyer path


52


is connected to the third branch point


56


. The eighth conveyer path


52


receives the bill conveyed by the six conveyer path


50


, and conveys it to the front.




The conveyer


12


has a first sorter


58


, a second sorter


59


, a third sorter


60


, a first solenoid


61


, a second solenoid


62


, and a third solenoid


63


.




The first sorter


58


is provided at the first branch point


54


. The first sorter


58


is driven by the first solenoid


61


to selectively connect the second conveyer path


46


to one of the third conveyer path


47


and the fourth conveyer path


48


. That is, the first sorter


58


switches the route of the bill, which is conveyed by the second conveyer path


46


to one of the third conveyer path


47


and the fourth conveyer path


48


.




The second sorter


59


is provided at the second branch point


55


. The second sorter


59


is driven by the second solenoid


62


to selectively connect the fourth conveyer path


48


to one of the fifth conveyer path


49


and the sixth conveyer path


50


. That is, the second sorter


59


switches the route of the bill, which is conveyed by the fourth conveyer path


48


to one of the fifth conveyer path


49


and the sixth conveyer path


50


.




The third sorter


60


is provided at the third branch point


56


. The third sorter


60


is driven by the third solenoid


63


to selectively connect the sixth conveyer path


50


to one of the seventh conveyer path


51


and the eighth conveyer path


52


. That is, the third sorter


60


switches the route of the bill, which is conveyed by the sixth conveyer path


50


to one of the seventh conveyer path


51


and the eighth conveyer path


52


.




In the conveyer paths


45


to


52


, a plurality of bill detecting sensors


64


are provided. These bill detecting sensors


64


detect the bills in the conveyer paths


45


to


52


. The bill detecting sensors


64


are used to judge whether the condition of the bills in the conveyer paths


45


to


52


is normal or abnormal. Further, the bill detecting sensors


64


are used to control the timings of driving the sorters


58


to


60


by the solenoids


61


to


63


.




Discriminating Device




The discriminating device


13


discriminates the bill conveyed through the first conveyer path


45


of the conveyer


12


, and outputs the result of the discrimination to the controller


17


. The discriminating device


13


has a first discriminating unit


66


and a second discriminating unit


67


.




The first discriminating unit


66


detects the image data of the bill conveyed by the conveyer


12


, and the magnetic data from the materials contained in the ink on the bill, and outputs the results of the discrimination to the controller


17


. The controller


17


compares the detected image data with the standard image, and compares the detected magnetic data with the standard magnetic data. Based on the comparisons, the genuineness, denomination, obverse or reverse, top or bottom, and normal or damaged condition of the bill can be judged.




The second discriminating unit


67


emits ultraviolet light on the bill conveyed by the conveyer


12


, and detects the presence or absence of light reflected from the bill (visible light). The second discriminating unit


67


outputs the results of the detection to the controller


17


. The ink on the true bill contains a material which can convert ultraviolet light into visible light. Therefore, the controller


17


can judge the presence or absence of the material based on the presence or absence of the visible light reflected from the bill, to thereby determine the genuineness of the bill.




From the results of the discrimination by the first and second discriminating devices


66


and


67


, the controller


17


judges the genuineness, denomination, obverse or reverse, top or bottom, and normal or damaged condition of the bill.




Here, the discrimination of the genuineness of the bill means judging whether the bill is genuine or counterfeit.




The discrimination of the denomination means judging the denomination of the bill.




The discrimination of the obverse or reverse of the bill means judging whether the bill is an “obverse note” or a “reverse note.” An obverse note means a bill whose upper face is the obverse when the bill passes through the first discriminating unit


66


. A reverse note means a bill whose upper face is the reverse when the bill passes through the first discriminating unit


66


.




The discrimination of the top or bottom of the bill means judging whether the bill is an “upward note” or an “inverted note”. An upward note is a bill whose downstream side with respect to the conveyance direction is the top when the bill passes through the first discriminating unit


66


. A inverted note is a bill whose downstream side with respect to the conveyance direction is the bottom when the bill passes through the first discriminating unit


66


.




The discrimination of the normal or damaged condition of the bill means judging whether the bill is a “normal note” or a “damaged note”. Here, the normal note is a bill which is clean and reusable. The damaged note is a bill which is unclean or damaged and is not reusable.




The controller


17


judges that the bill is a false note, even if the first discriminating unit


66


judges that the bill is a true note, and when the second discriminating unit


67


does not detect the normal reflected light.




Releasing Device




The releasing device


14


is controlled by the controller


17


, and has a plurality of stackers, which are a first stacker (stacking means)


69


, a second stacker (stacking means)


70


, and a third stacker (stacking means)


71


, and a rejecter


72


. The first stacker


69


, the second stacker


70


, and the third stacker


71


, and the rejecter


72


stack the bills and allow the operator to remove the bills which have been conveyed by the conveyer


12


.




The first stacker


69


is provided near the front side of and in the upper side of the machine body


10


, and is connected to the downstream end of the seventh conveyer path


51


.




The second stacker


70


is provided behind the first stacker


69


located in the upper side of the machine body


10


, and is connected to the downstream end of the fifth conveyer path


49


.




The third stacker


71


is provided behind the second stacker


70


located in the upper side of the machine body


10


, and is connected to the downstream end of the third conveyer path


47


.




The rejecter


72


is disposed in front of the first stacker


69


in the upper side of the machine body


10


, and behind the loading space


33


. The rejecter


72


is connected to the downstream end of the eighth conveyer path


52


.




Although, as described above, the first stacker


69


, the second stacker


70


, and the third stacker


71


are located at the different positions and are connected to different conveyer paths, these stackers


69


to


71


have the same structure.




Next, the stackers will now be explained in detail by way of the first stacker


69


as an example with reference to

FIGS. 3

to


9


.




As shown in

FIG. 4

, the first stacker


69


has a bottom forming member


74


, a releasing mechanism


75


, an upper cover


76


, and a shutter mechanism (position changer)


77


.




The bottom forming member


74


has a principal member


79


and a supporting member


80


.




The principal member


79


has a rear plate


81


, a front plate


82


, an upper plate


83


, a pair of right and left supporting plates


84


(only one of the pair is shown), and a pair of right and left side plates


86


shown in FIG.


6


.




The rear plate


81


is inclined so that its rear portion is positioned above its front portion. In the front portion of the rear plate


81


, a plurality of guide grooves


89


extends in the front-rear direction. Further, in the front portion of the rear plate


81


, a lower engaging long hole


90


extends in the side-to-side direction.




The front plate


82


of the principal member


79


extends from the front end of the rear plate


81


toward the upper front. In the right and left portions of the front plate


82


, the long holes


95


extend in the front-rear direction as shown in FIG.


7


. In the right and left portions at the upper end of the front plate


82


, upper engaging long openings


96


extend in the side-to-side direction. In the upper portion of the front plate


82


, an insertion groove


97


shown in

FIGS. 4 and 7

is made in the middle thereof in the side-to-side direction.




The supporting member


80


has an attached plate


92


, and an engaging plate


93


.




The supporting member


80


is attached via the upper portion of the attached plate


92


to the front portion of the front plate


82


of the principal member


79


. In this situation, the lower portion of the attached plate


92


protrudes below the rear plate


81


of the principal member


79


. The engaging plate


93


is disposed below the lower engaging long hole


90


of the rear plate


81


.




The upper plate


83


of the principal member


79


extends from the upper end of the front plate


82


toward the upper rear.




The supporting plate


84


is disposed below the long holes


95


of the front plate


82


. The supporting plate


84


has a long hole


98


extending in the front-rear direction as shown in FIG.


7


.




One of the side plates


86


shown in

FIG. 6

is positioned between the front plate


82


and the rear plate


81


. The other side plate


86


is located in the opposite side between the front plate


82


and the rear plate


81


. Both the side plates


86


are parallel to the side faces


22


of the machine body


10


.




The releasing mechanism


75


shown in

FIG. 4

has a releasing belt


100


, a feeding roller


101


, and an impeller


102


. The releasing mechanism


75


is driven by the conveyer drive motor


40


as well as the loader


11


and the conveyer


12


.




The releasing belt


100


is inclined so that its front portion is above its rear portion.




The feeding roller


101


is located below the rear portion of the releasing belt


100


.




The impeller


102


is located below the front portion of the releasing belt


100


.




Thus, the releasing mechanism


75


receives the bill, which has been conveyed through the seventh conveyer path


51


, with the releasing belt


100


and the feeding roller


101


. Then, the received bill is fed by the releasing belt


100


and the feeding roller


101


to the impeller


102


. The bill is thus delivered onto the bottom forming member


74


through the gap between the releasing belt


100


and the impeller


102


.




Then, the releasing mechanism


75


delivers the bill approximately in parallel to the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


. The bills released from the releasing mechanism


75


and moving in the delivery direction (the direction indicated by the arrow X) are obstructed by the shutter mechanism


77


(the details will be described later). The releasing mechanism


75


pushes down the bill with the impeller


102


, with the movement of the bill in the delivery direction being obstructed, in the direction of the front plate


82


(indicated by the arrow Y), while maintaining the bill parallel to the front plate


82


. This prevents the bill delivered by the releasing mechanism


75


from colliding with the next bill to be delivered. Thus, a number of bills can be securely stacked.




The upper cover


76


has a first guide


104


and a second guide


105


.




The first guide


104


is provided above the releasing mechanism


75


, and is in parallel to the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


.




The second guide


105


is connected to the upper end of the first guide


104


, and is also in parallel to the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


. The upper end of the second guide


105


approximately reaches the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


.




The second guide


105


has a protruding member


106


. The protruding member


106


protrudes from the middle of the second guide


105


and is perpendicular to the second guide


105


. The upper end of the protruding member


106


approximately reaches the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


. The front face


108


of the protruding member


106


faces upwards and to the front.




In the upper portion of the second guide


105


, an insertion groove


107


is made. When the operator removes the stacked bills S in the first stacker


69


, the operator can insert his finger through the insertion groove


107


. Therefore, the operator can easily remove the stacked bills S.




A stacking space


109


for stacking the bills is defined by the bottom forming member


74


and the upper cover


76


. The stacking space


109


has an upper opening which is an output opening


110


for allowing the operator to remove the bills. The output opening


110


is defined by the upper end of the upper plate


83


of the bottom forming member


74


, the upper ends of both the side plates


86


of the bottom forming member


74


, and the upper end of the second guide


105


of the upper cover


76


.




The first stacker


69


has a remaining bill detecting sensor


111


for detecting the bill remaining inside the stacking space


109


of the first stacker


69


. The remaining bill detecting sensor


111


outputs the result of the detection to the controller


17


. The remaining bill detecting sensor


111


comprises a light emitter and a light receiver. The light emitter and the light receiver are disposed outside the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


and outside the upper cover


76


, respectively. The front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


and the upper cover


76


have holes (not shown) which allow the light from the light emitter to reach the light receiver.




When the light receiver detects the light emitted from the light emitter, the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


detects that there is no bill in the stacking space


109


. In contrast, when the light receiver does not detect the light emitted from the light emitter, the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


finds a bill remaining in the stacking space


109


.




The first stacker


69


has a full-state detecting sensor


114


for detecting whether the stacking space


109


of the first stacker


69


is full of bills or not. The full-state detecting sensor


114


outputs the result of the detection to the controller


17


. The full-state detecting sensor


114


comprises a light emitter and a light receiver. The light emitter and the light receiver are separately disposed outside both the side plates


86


of the bottom forming member


74


and near the upper cover


76


. The side plates


86


of the bottom forming member


74


have holes


115


(only one of the pair is shown) which allows the light from the light emitter to reach the light receiver.




When the light receiver does not detect the light from the light emitter, the full-state detecting sensor


114


detects that the stacking space


109


is full of bills. In contrast, when the light receiver detects the light from the light emitter, the full-state detecting sensor


114


detects that the stacking space


109


is not full of bills.




The shutter mechanism


77


is controlled by the controller


17


, and has a shutter driver


117


and a shutter


118


as shown in FIG.


5


.




The shutter driver


117


comprises a supporting member


119


, a pair of rotational shafts


120


(only one of them is shown), a detection portion


121


, a spring


122


, a clutch


123


, a gear


124


, a fixed shaft


125


, a gear


126


, a pulley


127


, a belt


128


, a pulley


129


, a pair of guide rollers


130


(only one of them is shown), and a shutter drive motor


131


.




The supporting member


119


is fixed in the right side of the right frame


132


of the stacking space


109


.




Although not shown, the same supporting member is fixed in the left side of the left frame of the stacking space


109


.




One of the rotational shafts


120


is rotatably mounted on the right side supporting member


119


so that the shaft extends in the side-to-side direction. Although not shown, the other rotational shaft is rotatably mounted on the left side supporting member. These rotational shafts are disposed coaxially.




The detection portion


121


is fixed to the rotational shaft


120


.




The spring


122


urges the rotational shaft


120


so that its upper portion moves toward the rear.




The clutch


123


can be switched by control of the controller


17


, and is attached to the rotational shaft


120


. The gear


124


is attached to the clutch


123


. The clutch


123


selects fixing or detaching the gear


124


to or from the rotational shaft


120


.




The fixed shaft


125


is fixed to the supporting member


119


. This fixed shaft


125


supports the gear


126


rotatably. The gear


126


always meshes with the gear


124


of the clutch


123


.




The pulley


127


is fixed to the gear


126


.




The shutter drive motor


131


is supported by the supporting member


119


, and has a rotational shaft


133


. The controller


17


controls the rotation, stopping, and the direction of the rotation of the rotational shaft


133


driven by the shutter drive motor


131


. A pulley


129


is fixed to the rotational shaft


133


.




The guide roller


130


is disposed between the shutter drive motor


131


and the gear


126


.




One end of the belt


128


is wound around the pulley


127


while the other end is wound around the pulley


129


, and the middle portion of the belt


128


is put around a pair of guide rollers


130


.




The shutter


118


is fixed between a pair of the rotational shafts


120


. The shutter


118


comprises a curving plate


135


, a flat plate


136


, a pair of projections


137


, and an inclined portion


139


.




The curving plate


135


has a semicircular cylindrical shape defined between two imaginary planes passing through its center. The center axis of the curving plate


135


corresponds to that of the rotational axis


120


.




The projections


137


, as shown in

FIG. 6

, project from the right and left portions of the curving plate


135


, and form the cylindrical shapes continuously with the curving plate


135


. That is, the center axes and radiuses of the projections


137


correspond to those of the curving plate


135


.




As shown in

FIG. 4

, the flat plate


136


is provided opposite to the projections


137


of the curving plate


135


. The entire curving plate


135


is disposed to one side with respect to an imaginary line extending from the flat plate


136


.




The inclined portion


139


connects the curving plate


135


and the flat plate


136


. The inclined portion


139


is inclined with respect to the flat plate


136


so as to tend toward the top of the curving plate


135


. The inclined portion


139


is formed in the middle of the right-left width of the shutter


118


.




The shutter driver


117


drives the shutter drive motor


131


in one direction while connecting the gear


124


with the rotational shaft


120


by the clutch


123


. Thus, the rotation of the rotational shaft


133


of the shutter drive motor


131


is transmitted via the pulley


129


, the belt


128


, the pulley


127


, the gear


126


, the gear


124


, and the clutch


123


to the rotational shaft


120


. The shutter


118


, as shown in

FIGS. 4 and 7

, moves the flat plate


136


toward the rear of the curving plate


135


while moving the projections


137


toward the front of the curving plate


135


, so that the output opening


110


is closed. In this situation, the curving plate


135


is convex.




Then, the shutter driver


117


stops the shutter drive motor


131


while connecting the gear


124


with the rotational shaft


120


by the clutch


123


. Therefore, the shutter


118


is fixed while closing the output opening


110


.




When in the closed state, the shutter


118


completely prevents removal of the stacked bill in the stacking space


109


.




While connecting the gear


124


with the rotational shaft


120


by the clutch


123


, the shutter driver


117


drives the shutter drive motor


131


in the opposite direction. Thus, the rotation of the rotational shaft


133


of the shutter drive motor


131


is transmitted via the pulley


129


, the belt


128


, the pulley


127


, the gear


126


, the gear


124


, and the clutch


123


to the rotational shaft


120


. The shutter


118


, as shown in

FIG. 8

, rotates the flat plate


136


toward the upper front. Thus, the shutter


118


opens the output opening


110


.




As the shutter


118


is rotated to the fully-opened point, the projections


137


are moved toward the rear, and pass through the insertion grooves


97


of the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


into the stacking space


109


.




When the shutter


118


has fully opened the output opening


110


, the flat plate


136


is above the curving plate


135


. Further, the flat plate


136


is inclined so that the upper end of the flat plate


136


is nearer to the front than its lower end.




In this situation, the shutter driver


117


stops the shutter drive motor


131


while the connecting the gear


124


with the rotational shaft


120


by the clutch


123


. Thus, the shutter


118


is fixed while fully opening the output opening


110


.




The shutter


118


, which is opened, allows removal of the stacked bills in the stacking space


109


.




The shutter driver


117


can operate the clutch


123


to disconnect the gear


124


from the rotational shaft


120


. Then, the shutter


118


allows the operator to manually open or close the output opening


110


. When the clutch


123


disconnects the gear


124


from the rotational shaft


120


, the spring


122


urges the shutter


118


toward the direction to close the output opening


110


. Therefore, unless the operator operates the shutter


118


, the shutter


118


closes the output opening


110


.




When the shutter


118


closes the output opening


110


, the flat plate


136


is positioned in front of the bill delivered by the releasing mechanism


75


. The closed shutter


118


obstruct bills moving in the delivery direction from the releasing mechanism


75


. Thus, the releasing mechanism


75


drives the impeller


102


to hit the end of the delivered bill toward the front plate


82


.




The shutter driver


117


has a closed shutter sensor


141


, and an opened shutter sensor


142


.




The closed shutter sensor


141


judges, based on the presence or absence of the detection portion


121


, whether the shutter


118


is completely closing the output opening


110


or not (as shown in FIGS.


4


and


7


).




The opened shutter sensor


142


judges, based on the presence or absence of the detection portion


121


, whether the shutter


118


has completely opened the output opening


110


or not (as shown in FIG.


8


).




The closed shutter sensor


141


and the opened shutter sensor


142


output the results of the detection to the controller


17


.




As shown in

FIGS. 6 and 7

, the first stacker


69


has a guide mechanism (guide)


144


. The guide mechanism


144


comprises a pair of right and left guide plates


145


, core rods


147


attached to the both guide plates


145


, and springs


148


.




Each of the guide plates


145


comprises a principal plate


149


, an engaging portion


150


, and a plurality of guide portions


151


.




The engaging portion


151


is formed at the upper edge of the principal plate


149


, and is perpendicular to the principal plate


149


.




The guide portion


150


protrudes from the lower edge of the principal plate


149


, and is in the same plane as the principal plate


149


.




The guide plates


145


are disposed above the bottom forming member


74


. The engaging portions


150


of the guide plates


145


are engaged with the upper engaging long openings


96


of the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


, and the guide portions


151


are inserted into the guide groove


89


of the rear plate


81


.




In this situation, the guide plates


145


are supported at the bent portion


152


between the engaging portions


150


and the principal plates


149


by the front plate


82


. Thus, the guide plates


145


are rotatably supported by the first stacker


69


. The center of the rotation is the contact point B of the bent portion


152


with the front plate


82


. The guide plates


145


are rotatably supported at the output opening


110


of the first stacker


69


.




The rotational ranges of the guide plates


145


depend on the sizes of the guide groove


89


through which the guide portions


151


are inserted.




The core rods


147


are fixed to the principal plates


149


of the guide plates


145


, and are perpendicular to the principal plates


149


. The core rods


147


are inserted through the long hole


95


of the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


and through the long holes


98


of the supporting plate


84


.




The springs


148


are wound around the core rods


147


, and intervene between the principal plate


149


and the supporting plate


84


. The springs


148


urges the guide plates


145


so that the guide portions


151


are positioned at the rear ends of the guide grooves


89


.




The stacking space


109


is defined below the upper cover


76


above the guide plates


145


.




According to the above construction, when there is no bill on the guide plates


145


, the springs


148


urge the guide plates


145


so that the guide portions


151


are positioned at the rear ends of the guide grooves


89


as shown in FIG.


7


. In this situation, the angle of the guide plates


145


with respect to the front plate


82


becomes maximized. That is, the lower ends of the guide plates


145


are positioned above and behind the lower edge of the front plate


82


, thereby minimizing the capacity of the stacking space


109


.




When the guide plates


145


are in the above described condition, the releasing mechanism


75


delivers the bill into the stacking space


109


, and the impeller


102


pushes down the bill toward the front plate


82


. Then, the bill drops on the guide plates


145


or on the bills stacked on the guide plates


145


. When only the first bill is placed on the guide plates


145


, the angle of the first bill with respect to the horizontal plane is minimized.




As the bills are successively delivered onto the guide plates


145


, the guide plates


145


are rotated about the bent portion


152


by the weight of the bills. The angle of the rotation of the guide plates


145


depends on the weight of the bills. As the weight of the bills increases, the angle between the guide plates


145


and the front plate


82


decreases. That is, as the weight of the bills increases, the guide plates


145


increases the capacity of the stacking space


109


.




In other words, the guide plates


145


moves, depending on the weight of the bills delivered onto the first stacker


69


from the conveyer


12


. The springs


148


urges the guide plates


145


, which then move to a position corresponding to the weight of the bills delivered onto the first stacker


69


from the conveyer


12


.




When more than a predetermined amount of bills is loaded onto the guide plates


145


, the guide plates


145


shorten the springs


148


so that the guide portions


151


are positioned at the front end of the guide groove


89


. In this situation, the angle of the guide plates


145


with respect to the front plate


82


is minimized, that is, zero. The capacity of the stacking space


109


is maximized. The angle of the bills on the guide plates


145


with respect to the horizontal plane is maximized.




Thus, the guide plates


145


change the positions of the stacked bills S, depending on the weight of the stacked bills in the first stacker


69


.




The first stacker


69


further comprises a pusher (position changer)


154


which is shown in

FIGS. 4

,


6


, and


8


. The pusher


154


is disposed between the right and left guide plates


145


.




The pusher


154


has a principal plate


155


, and an engaging portion


156


.




The engaging portion


156


is formed at the lower edge of the principal plate


155


, and is perpendicular to the principal plate


155


.




A cut-out portion


157


is made in the upper edge of the principal plate


155


. A pair of oblong holes


158


extending in the vertical direction are made in the lower right and left portions of the principal plate


155


. These oblong holes


158


allows the light from the light emitter of the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


to pass through.




The pusher


154


is disposed above the bottom forming member


74


. The engaging portion


156


is engaged with the lower engaging long hole


90


of the rear plate


81


of the bottom forming member


74


so that the pusher


154


is disposed on the engaging plate


93


. The bent portion


159


between the engaging portion


156


and the principal plate


155


is supported by the supporting member


80


.




Thus, the pusher


154


is rotatably supported by the first stacker


69


. The center of the rotation is the contact point A between the supporting member


80


and the bent portion


159


.




The upper portion of the principal plate


155


can be in contact with the projections


137


of the shutter


118


.




As shown in

FIG. 4

, when the shutter


118


closes the output opening


110


, the projections


137


of the shutter


118


do not come in contact with the principal plate


155


. As shown in

FIG. 8

, as the shutter


118


rotates to open the output opening


110


, the projections


137


come in contact with the front side of the principal plate


155


. This contact occurs just before the shutter


118


completely opens the output opening


110


. After the contact until the complete opening of the output opening, the projections


137


push the principal plate


155


toward the upper cover


76


.




As shown in

FIG. 4

, when the shutter


118


of the shutter mechanism


77


is closed, the angle of the pusher


154


with respect to the front plate


82


is minimized, that is, zero because of its own weight. The pusher


154


overlies on the front plate


82


.




In this situation, the releasing mechanism


75


delivers the bill roughly in parallel to the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


, and the impeller


102


pushes down the bill onto the front plate


82


while maintaining the direction of the bill. Then, the bill is placed onto the pusher


154


or onto the guide plates


145


.




Then, when the controller


17


opens the shutter


118


of the shutter mechanism


77


, the pusher


154


rotates with the shutter


118


. The pusher


154


rotates so that its angle with respect to the front plate


82


becomes maximized. Then, the upper portions of the stacked bills S are moved toward the upper rear. That is, the pusher


154


changes the positions of the stacked bills S when the shutter


118


is opened by control of the controller


17


. The upper portions of the stacked bills S are separated from the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


. In other words, the upper portions of the stacked bills S are lifted. As the result, it becomes easy to remove the bills from the output opening


110


.




The guide plates


145


may be made from an elastic resin which is deformable by the weight of the bills delivered from the conveyer


12


into the first stacker


69


.




In this case, as shown in

FIG. 9

, the upper edges of the guide plates


145


are fixed to the boundary between the front plate


82


and the upper plate


83


of the bottom forming member


74


. When the bills are placed on the guide plates


145


, the guide plates


145


are deformed by the weight of the bills. As the weight of the bills increases, the angle between the guide plates


145


and the front plate


82


decreases.




As shown in

FIG. 3

, the second stacker


70


is constructed in a manner similar to the first stacker


69


, except that the releasing mechanism


75


is connected to the fifth conveyer path


49


.




Also, the third stacker


71


is constructed in a manner similar to the first stacker


69


, except that the releasing mechanism


75


is connected to the third conveyer path


47


.




Each of the stackers


69


to


71


has the shutter


118


, and the shutter driver


117


which includes the shutter drive motor


131


for opening and closing the shutter


118


.




Next, the rejecter


72


will now be explained with reference to FIG.


3


.




The rejecter


72


comprises a bottom forming member


161


, a releasing mechanism


162


, an upper cover


163


, and an opening and closing mechanism


164


.




The bottom forming member


161


comprises a rear plate


165


, a front plate


166


, an upper plate


167


, and a pair of side plates (not shown).




The rear plate


165


is inclined approximately at the same angle as the rear plate


81


of the first stacker


69


so that the rear end of the rear plate


165


is above its front end. The length from the front to the rear of the rear plate


165


of the rejecter


72


is shorter than that of the rear plate


81


of the first stacker


69


.




The front plate


166


is formed from the front end of the rear plate


165


toward the upper front. The front plate


166


is inclined approximately at the same angle as the front plate


82


of the first stacker


69


.




The upper plate


167


is formed from the upper end of the front plate


166


toward the front. The upper plate


167


extends horizontally. The front end of the upper plate


167


corresponds to the upper edge of the loader rear face


32


of the loader


11


.




Both the side plates are disposed at both sides of the front plate


166


and the rear plate


165


. The side plates are in parallel to the side faces


22


of the machine body


10


.




The releasing mechanism


162


is constructed in a manner similar to the releasing mechanism


75


of the first stacker


69


, except that the releasing mechanism


162


is connected to the eighth conveyer path


52


.




The upper cover


163


is disposed above the releasing mechanism


162


. The upper cover


163


has a first plate


170


and a second plate


121


.




The first plate


170


is in parallel to the front plate


166


of the bottom forming member


161


. The upper edge of the first plate


170


reaches the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


.




The second plate


171


is formed from the upper end of the first plate


170


toward lower front.




The upper cover


163


has an extension member


172


which extends from the middle of the first plate


170


and is perpendicular to the first plate


170


. The upper end of the extension member


172


reaches the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


. The front face


173


of the extension member


172


faces front upward.




The space within the bottom forming member


161


and the upper cover


163


is a stacking space


174


for stacking bills. An upper opening of the stacking space


174


is a reject opening


175


for allowing an operator to remove the bills. That is, the reject opening


175


is defined within the upper edge of the front plate


166


of the bottom forming member


161


, the upper edges of the side plates of the bottom forming member


161


, and the front edge of the second plate


171


of the upper cover


163


.




The distance between the front plate


166


of the bottom forming member


161


of the rejecter


72


and the first plate


170


of the upper cover


163


is shorter than the distance between the front plate


82


of the bottom forming member


74


and the first guide


104


in the first stacker


69


. Therefore, the stacking space


174


of the rejecter


72


is smaller than the stacking space


109


of the first stacker


69


.




The rejecter


72


has a remaining bill detecting sensor


111


and a full-state detecting sensor


114


in a manner similar to the first stacker


69


(see FIG.


2


). The rejecter


72


has holes which allows light from a light emitter to reach a light receiver.




The opening and closing mechanism


164


can be manually opened and closed by the operator, and has a lid


177


, a rotational shaft


178


, and a spring (not shown).




The rotational shaft


178


is disposed above the upper plate


167


of the bottom forming member


161


, and extends in the side-to-side direction.




The spring urges the rotational shaft


178


so that its upper portion rotates to the rear.




The lid


177


is fixed to the rotational shaft


178


. The lid


177


has a first flat plate


180


, a second flat plate


181


, and a supporting member


182


.




The first flat plate


180


and the second flat plate


181


forms an obtuse angle.




The supporting member


182


is formed at the end of the first flat plate


180


opposite to the second flat plate


181


.




The supporting member


182


of the lid


177


is fixed to the rotational shaft


178


.




Unless an operator operates the lid


177


, the first flat plate


180


stays behind the second flat plate


181


, and the second flat plate


181


is raised, so that the reject opening


175


is closed.




When the lid


177


closes the reject opening


175


, the first flat plate


180


is positioned in front of the bills delivered by the releasing mechanism


162


. The closed lid


177


obstructs the bills which move in the delivery direction from the releasing mechanism


162


. Thus, the releasing mechanism


162


drives the impeller


102


to hit the end of the delivered bill.




The lid


177


, which closes the reject opening


175


, can be manually rotated by the operator. The lid


177


is rotated forward about the rotational shaft


178


. Thus, the reject opening


175


is opened. When the operator releases the lid


177


, the lid


177


is rotated by the urging force of the spring so that the reject opening


175


is closed.




As described above, the operator can manually open the lid


177


of the rejecter


72


to open the reject opening


175


. In contrast, the shutters


118


of the stackers


69


to


71


can prevent the manual opening or closing of the output openings


110


by an operator as the need arises. Further, the shutters


118


of the stackers


69


to


71


can be automatically opened or closed.




Operating Device




The operating device


15


, as shown in

FIGS. 1 and 2

, has a pair of start/stop keys


184


, a first operating unit


185


, and a second operating unit


186


.




One of the start/stop keys


184


is provided in the left side of the rejecter


72


on the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


. The other start/stop key


184


is provided in the right side of the rejecter


72


on the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


. These start/stop keys


184


output signals to the controller


17


each time they are pushed.




The first operating unit


185


is provided in the left side of the second stacker


70


on the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


.




The first operating unit


185


, as shown in

FIG. 10

, has a batch key


188


indicating the character “BATCH”, an obverse/reverse key


189


indicating the character “OBVERSE/REVERSE”, a normal/damaged key


190


indicating the character “NORMAL/DAMAGED”, a UV key


191


indicating the character “UV”, a 100 key


192


indicating the number “100”, a 50 key


193


indicating the number “50”, a 10 key


194


indicating the number “10”, an OL key


195


indicating the character “OL”, a print key


196


indicating the character “PRINT”, and a function key


197


indicating the character “FUNCTION.” These keys


188


to


197


output signals to the controller


17


each time they are pushed.




The first operating unit


185


is not equipped with any lid, and is always exposed. The reason for this is that the first operating unit


185


is frequently operated.




The second operating unit


186


is provided in front of the first operating unit


185


on the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


. The second operating unit


186


is provided adjacent to the first operating unit


185


.




The second operating unit


186


has ten keys


199


which includes 0 to 9 keys indicating the characters “0” to “9”, a number/sum key


200


indicating the character “NUMBER/SUM”, a total key


201


indicating the character “TOTAL”, a set key


202


indicating the character “SET”, a mode key


203


indicating the character “MODE”, a CE key


204


indicating the character “CE”, and an ENT key


205


indicating the character “ENT.” These keys


199


to


205


output signals to the controller


17


each time they are pushed.




The second operating unit


186


has a manually slidable cover


206


, which exposes or covers the keys. The reason for this is that the second operating unit


186


is not frequently used.




The functions of the keys


184


,


188


to


197


, and


199


to


205


are shown in the table of FIG.


11


.




In this table, the keys marked with ∘ in the “SORT SETTING” sections are used for setting a way to sort the bills, which are loaded in the loader


11


, into the stackers


69


to


71


.




The keys marked with ∘ in the “SORT SETTING” sections are mainly used for the following function settings:




1) Setting the Number of Bills for a Batch Process




The batch process includes dividing the bills in the loader


11


into groups each of which has a predetermined number of bills, e.g., 100 bills),




2) Setting a Discrimination Level for Detecting a Damaged Bill




The discrimination level is a criterion for judging whether the bill, detected by the first discriminating unit


66


, is a normal note or a damaged note. The discrimination level can be set to one of H (high level), M (medium level), and L (low level). When the discrimination level is set to H, the bill is judged to be a damaged note even when the damage or dirt of the bill is not serious. In contrast, when the discriminating level is set to L, the bill is not judged to be a damaged note even when the bill is seriously dirtied or worn.




3) Setting a UV Discrimination Level




The UV discrimination level is a criterion for detecting the presence or absence of the visible light which is produced by the ultraviolet light emitted from the second discriminating unit


67


onto the bill and is reflected from the bill. The UV discrimination level can be set to one of H (high level), M (medium level), and L (low level). When the UV discrimination level is set to L, the reflected light can be detected even when there is a small quantity of the light reflected from the bill. In contrast, when the UV discrimination level is set to H, the reflected light cannot be detected even when there is a large quantity of light reflected from the bill.




Although the number of keys


184


,


188


to


197


, and


199


to


205


is limited, each key has plural functions to enable various settings. The main functions of the keys


184


,


188


to


197


, and


199


to


205


will now be explained.




To start or stop the sorting process, an operator pushes the start/stop key


184


. After the completion of the sorting process, the operator may push this key to open the shutter


118


.




When in a standby state the bill arranger does not perform the sorting process, one of the start/stop keys


184


outputs a signal. Then, the controller


17


sets the entire bill arranger exclusively under the control of this active start/stop key


184


. That is, the signal from the other start/stop key


184


is rejected until the bill arranger enters the standby state.




To combine the sorting process with a batch process, the batch key


188


is pushed by the operator. To display the remaining bills in the stackers


69


to


71


on the display


16


during the sorting process, the batch key


188


is pushed by the operator.




To select an obverse/reverse sorting process, the obverse/reverse key


189


is pushed by the operator. The obverse/reverse sorting process is separating the obverse bills from the reverse bills loaded in the loader


11


.




To select a normal/damaged sorting process, the normal/damaged key


190


is pushed by the operator. To display the discrimination level for a damaged bill on the display


16


, the normal/damaged key


190


is pushed by the operator. The normal/damaged sorting process divides the bills in the loader


11


into normal notes and damaged notes.




To display the type of the bills delivered to the rejecter


72


on the display


16


, the UV key


191


is pushed by the operator.




To select the denomination A, the 100 key


192


is pushed by the operator. For example, when the bill arranger is used in Japan, the denomination A is 10,000 yen notes, which is then represented by “100.”




To select the denomination B, the 50 key


193


is pushed by the operator. For example, when the bill arranger is used in Japan, the denomination B is 5,000 yen notes, which is then represented by “50.”




To select the denomination C, the 10 key


194


is pushed by the operator. For example, when the bill arranger is used in Japan, the denomination C is 1,000 yen notes, which is then represented by “10.”




To connect the bill arranger with another device and establish communication therebetween, the OL key


195


is pushed by the operator.




Thus, one of plural sorting process modes for determining a way to sort the bills loaded in the loader


11


can be selected by the batch key


188


, the obverse/reverse key


189


, the normal/damaged key


190


, the UV key


191


, the 100 key


192


, the 50 key


193


, the 10 key


194


, and the set key


202


.




To print out the setting data or the data obtained by the process, the print key


196


is pushed by the operator.




To select one of the function settings, the function key


197


is pushed by the operator.




The ten keys


199


are pushed to input numerical values.




To indicate one of the number of notes (hereinafter referred to as “number indication”) and the sum of money (hereinafter referred to as “sum indication”) on the display


16


, the number/sum key


200


is pushed by the operator.




Before the starting of the sorting process, one of the number indication or the sum indication is initially displayed.




To display one of the total values (hereinafter referred to as “total indication”) and the sub total value (hereinafter referred to as “subtotal indication”) on the display


16


, the total key


201


is pushed by the operator. The sub total values are the number or the sum of bills actually stacked in each stacker


69


to


71


, and the total number or the total sum of bills in the stacker


69


to


71


. The total values are the number or the sum of bills fed into each stacker


69


to


71


in one sorting process, and the total number or the total sum of bills in the stacker


69


to


71


.




Before the starting of the sorting process, one of the sub total value or the total value is initially displayed.




To initialize the setting, the set key


202


is pushed by the operator. To set the process mode, the mode key


203


is pushed by the operator. To cancel an input value, the CE key


204


is pushed by the operator. To fix the input data, the ENT key


205


is pushed by the operator.




Display




The display


16


has a function display


208


, a general display (general display means)


209


, a first separate display (display means)


210


, a second separate display (display means)


211


, a third separate display (display means)


212


, a reject indicating lamp


213


, and a pair of priority indicating lamps


214


. The functions of these members may be changed, and are controlled by the controller


17


.




The function display


208


, as shown in

FIG. 1

, is provided at the rear of the first operating device


185


on the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


, and is disposed adjacent to the first operating unit


185


. The function display


208


displays setting data and guidance when setting the function. Further, the function display


208


can display the information other than that to be displayed by the general display


209


and the separate displays


210


to


212


.




The general display


209


, as shown in

FIG. 1

, is provided at the rear end of the upper face


25


of the machine body


10


. The general display


209


can display at least one of the number of or the sum of bills stacked in all the stackers


69


to


71


. The general display


209


is used in common for all the stackers


69


to


71


, and displays data related to the entire bill arranger. The displayed contents are shown in FIG.


15


.




The general display


209


has a guidance display


216


, an abnormality lamp


217


, a total lamp


218


, a number lamp


219


, a sum lamp


220


, and a digital display


221


. The number lamp


219


and the sum lamp


220


are called a general number/sum lamps


222


.




The guidance display


216


is provided at the left end of the general display


209


. The guidance display


216


shows a schematic layout of the bill arranger. In the schematic layout, LEDs


223


are provided corresponding to the parts of the bill arranger. The LEDs


223


can be turned on or off.




The full-state detecting sensor


114


detects that one of the stackers


69


to


71


and the rejecter


72


is full of stacked bills. At that time, the controller


17


judges that this condition is abnormal, and turns on the LED


223


corresponding to the abnormal point of the guidance display


16


.




Further, when the bill detecting sensor


64


of the conveyer


12


detects the abnormal conveyance, the controller


17


judges the abnormal condition, and turns on the LED


223


corresponding to the abnormal point of the guidance display


16


.




Moreover, when in the batch process the controller


17


detects that in one of the stackers


69


to


71


the stacked bills reach the batch number, the controller


17


turns on the corresponding LED


223


of the guidance display


216


.




The abnormal lamp


217


is provided at the upper right of the guidance display


216


. The abnormal lamp


217


has the character “ABNORMAL” which means an abnormal condition, and a back light with an LED behind the character “ABNORMAL.” This back light can be turned on or off.




When the full-state detecting sensor


114


detects that one of the stackers


69


to


71


and the rejecter


72


is full of stacked bills, the controller


17


judges that it is in the abnormal condition, and turns on the abnormal lamp


217


.




Further, when the bill detecting sensor


64


of the conveyer


12


detects the abnormal conveyance, the controller


17


judges that it is the abnormal condition, and turns on the abnormal lamp


217


.




The total lamp


218


is provided below the abnormal lamp


217


. The total lamp


218


has the character “TOTAL”, and a back light of an LED behind the character “TOTAL.” The character “TOTAL” means that the total sum or the total number of bills is displayed on the digital display


221


. The back light can be turned on or off.




The number lamp


219


is provided at the right side of the abnormal lamp


217


. The number lamp


219


has the character “NUMBER” which means the number of notes, and a back light of an LED behind the character “NUMBER.” The back light can be turned on or off.




The sum lamp


220


is provided at the right side of the total lamp


218


. The total lamp


220


has the character “SUM” which means the sum of money, and a back light of an LED behind the character “SUM.” The back light can be turned on or off.




The digital display


221


is provided in the right side of the number lamp


219


and the sum lamp


220


, and comprises LEDs which can display a number of eight figures.




The first separate display


210


, as shown in

FIG. 1

, is provided at the protruding member


106


of the first stacker


69


. That is, the second separate display


211


is provided just behind the output opening


110


and the shutter


118


of the first stacker


69


. The first separate display


210


can display data related to the first stacker


69


. The data is, e.g., at least one of the number and the sum of bills stacked in the first stacker


69


.




The second separate display


211


is provided at the protruding member


106


of the second stacker


70


. That is, the first separate display


210


is provided just behind the output opening


110


and the shutter


118


of the second stacker


70


. The second separate display


211


can display data related to the second stacker


70


. The data is, e.g., at least one of the number and the sum of bills stacked in the second stacker


70


.




The third separate display


212


is provided at the protruding member


106


of the third stacker


71


. That is, the third separate display


212


is provided just behind the output opening


110


and the shutter


118


of the third stacker


71


. The third separate display


212


can display data related to the third stacker


71


. The data is, e.g., the number or the sum of bills stacked in the third stacker


71


.




That is, the respective stackers


69


to


71


have the separate displays


210


to


212


.




Each of the first separate display


210


, the second separate display


211


, and the third separate display


212


has denomination lamps


224


, content lamps


225


, a number/sum lamps


226


, and a digital display


227


as shown in FIG.


14


.




The denomination lamps


224


are a 100 lamp


229


, a 50 lamp


230


, and a 10 lamp


231


.




The content lamps


225


are an obverse lamp


232


, a reverse lamp


233


, a normal lamp


234


, and a damage lamp


235


.




The number/sum lamps


226


are a number lamp


237


and a sum lamp


238


.




The 100 lamp


229


has the figure “100” indicating the denomination A, and a back light of an LED behind the figure “100.” The back light can be turned on or off.




The 50 lamp


230


is provided at the right side of the 100 lamp


229


. The 50 lamp


230


has the figure “50” indicating the denomination B, and a back light of an LED behind the figure “50.” The back light can be turned on or off.




The 10 lamp


231


is provided at the right side of the 50 lamp


230


. The 10 lamp


231


has the figure “10” indicating the denomination C, and a back light of an LED behind the figure “10.” The back light can be turned on or off.




The obverse lamp


232


is an LED provided at the upper right side of the 10 lamp


231


, and can be turned on or off. To the right side of the obverse lamp


232


, the character “OBVERSE” which means the obverse note is indicated.




The reverse lamp


233


is an LED provided below the obverse lamp


232


, and can be turned on or off. To the right side of the reverse lamp


233


, the character “REVERSE” which means the reverse note is indicated.




The normal lamp


234


is an LED provided to the right side of the character “OBVERSE”, and can be turned on or off. To the right side of the normal lamp


234


, the character “NORMAL” which means the normal note is indicated.




The damage lamp


235


is an LED provided below the normal lamp


234


, and can be turned on or off. To the right side of the damage lamp


235


, the character “DAMAGED” which means the damaged note is indicated.




The number lamp


237


is provided to the right side of the character “NORMAL”. The number lamp


237


has the character “NUMBER” which means the number of notes, and a back light of an LED behind the character “NUMBER.” The back light can be turned on or off.




The sum lamp


238


is provided to the right side of the character “DAMAGE”. The sum lamp


238


has the character “SUM” which means the sum of money, and a back light of an LED behind the character “SUM.” The back light can be turned on or off.




The digital display


227


is provided to the right side of the number lamp


237


and the sum lamp


238


, and has LEDs which can display a number of eight figures.




The reject indicating lamp


213


, as shown in

FIG. 1

, has an LED provided at the protruding member


172


of the rejecter


72


. The reject display lamp


213


is provided just behind the reject opening


175


and the lid


177


of the rejecter


72


. When the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


of the rejecter


72


detects a bill, the controller


17


turns on the reject indicating lamp


213


. When the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


of the rejecter


72


does not detects a bill, the controller


17


turns off the reject indicating lamp


213


.




The priority indicating lamps


214


are LEDs just behind the start/stop keys


184


. The left priority indicating lamp


214


is turned on when the left start/stop key


184


occupies the bill arranger. The right priority indicating lamp


214


is turned on when the right start/stop key


184


occupies the bill arranger.




Next, the setting process of the bill arranger will now be explained.




Function Setting




When setting the function, the information required for the setting operation is displayed on the function display


208


shown in FIG.


10


. The operator confirms the displayed contents, and sets the function.




The operation and the contents displayed on the function display


208


for the function setting will be explained.




Initially, the operator turns on the main switch


27


, and then the controller


17


displays the contents shown in

FIG. 10

on the function display


208


.




That is, the controller


17


displays a date in the upper left area, and a time in the upper right area on the function display


208


. The controller


17


displays the batch number for the batch process stored in the memory (e.g., 100) in the lower left area on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


displays the character “UF”, which means the discrimination level for a damaged bill, and the current discrimination level stored in the memory (e.g., “H”), in the lower middle area on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


displays the character “UV”, which means the UV detection level, and the current UV detection level stored in the memory (e.g., “H”), in the lower right area on the function display


208


.




When a predetermined time has passed after the main switch


27


is turned on, the controller


17


controls the bill arranger to enter the standby state, and displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12A

on the function display


208


. That is, the controller


17


displays the character “OP.” which means the operator number, and the operator number which is stored in the memory at that time (e.g., 123), instead of the date in the upper area.




When the bill arranger enters the standby state after the completion of the process, the controller


17


displays the contents of the initial state shown in

FIG. 12A

on the function display.




Only in the standby state, is the sorting setting, which is described later, possible.




Further, only in the standby state, is the sorting process for the bills loaded in the loader


11


executable. By pushing the start/stop key


184


, the controller


17


executes the sorting process according to the present function setting and of the present sorting setting.




In the initial state, the operator pushes the ENT key


205


. Then, the controller


17


displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12B

on the function display


208


. That is, the value of the operator number in the contents shown in

FIG. 12A

is blank. Then, the operator inputs the operator number through the ten keys


199


. The controller


17


then displays the number input from the ten keys


199


in the blank.




When the value is input from the ten keys


199


and the ENT key


205


is pushed, the controller stores the input operator number into the memory. Then, the controller


17


displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12C

on the function display


208


. The controller


17


displays the character “BATCH” which means the batch number, and the batch number stored in the memory (e.g., “100”) on the function display


208


.




When the value input by the ten keys


199


is an error, the input value can be deleted by pushing the CE key


204


.




When the function display


208


displays the contents shown in FIG.


12


C and the operator pushes the set key


202


, the controller


17


displays the contents shown in FIG.


12


D. That is, the controller


17


displays the mark “→”, which means “change”, to the right side of the batch number (e.g., “100”), and the right space of the mark becomes blank. Then, the operator inputs the batch number by the ten keys


199


. The controller


17


displays the value input by the ten keys


199


in the blank space. The operator re-inputs the value by the ten keys


199


, and pushes the ENT key


205


. Then, the controller


17


updates the batch number stored in the memory to the re-input value. Simultaneously, the controller


17


displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12C

on the function display


208


. At that time, the controller


17


displays the value newly stored in the memory as the batch number.




When the ENT key


205


is pushed while the contents shown in

FIG. 12C

are displayed, the controller


17


then displays the contents shown in FIG.


12


E. That is, the controller


17


displays the character “UF” which means the discrimination level for a damaged note, and the character which represents the present discrimination level stored in the memory (e.g., “H”), at the upper left in the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


displays the numeral “100” which means the denomination A, the character “D” which means the discrimination level for dirtied bills, the present discrimination level value for the dirtied bills of the denomination A stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), the character “T” which means the discrimination level for worn bills, and the present discrimination level value for the worn bills of the denomination A stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), at the upper right in the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


displays the numeral “50” which means the denomination B, the character “D” which means the discrimination level for dirtied bills, the present discrimination level value for dirtied bills of the denomination B stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), the character “T” which means the discrimination level for worn bills, and the present discrimination level value for worn bills of the denomination B stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), at the lower left in the function display


208


. Moreover, the controller


17


displays the numeral “10” which means the denomination C, the character “D” which means the discrimination level for dirtied bills of the denomination C, the present discrimination level value for dirtied bills of the denomination C stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), the character “T” which means the discrimination level for worn bills, and the present discrimination level value for worn bills of the denomination C stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), at the lower right in the function display


208


. Here, the discrimination level is indicated by a value of 1 to 10.




In this situation, to change the discrimination level for damaged notes, the operator pushes the set key


202


. The controller


17


then displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12F

on the function display


208


. That is, the discrimination level value for the denomination A in the contents shown in

FIG. 12E

is blank. The blank space can be moved, depending on the number of pushes on the set key


202


. When a desired field is blank, the operator inputs a value with the ten keys


199


. The controller


17


then displays the value input by the ten keys


199


in the blank space. The operator re-inputs the value by the ten keys


199


, and pushes the ENT key


205


. Then, the controller


17


updates the discrimination level value stored in the memory to the re-input value. Simultaneously, the controller


17


displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12E

on the function display


208


. At that time, the controller


17


displays the value newly stored in the memory as the discrimination level value. Based on the values, the characters H—L which represent the discrimination level stored in the memory are switched if necessary.




When the ENT key


205


is pushed while the contents shown in

FIG. 12E

are displayed, the controller


17


then displays the contents shown in FIG.


12


G. That is, the controller


17


displays the character “UV” which means the UV detection level, and the character which represents the present UV detection level stored in the memory (e.g., “H”), at the upper left in the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


displays the numeral “100” which means the denomination A, and the present UV detection level value for the denomination A stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), at the upper right in the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


displays the numeral “50” which means the denomination B, and the present UV detection level value for the denomination B stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), at the lower left in the function display


208


. Moreover, the controller


17


displays the numeral “10” which means the denomination C, and the present UV detection level value for the denomination C stored in the memory (e.g., “8”), at the lower right in the function display


208


. Here, the UV detection level is indicated by a value of 1 to 10.




In this situation, to change the UV detection level, the operator pushes the set key


202


. The controller


17


then displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12H

on the function display


208


. That is, the UV detection level value for the denomination A in the contents shown in

FIG. 12G

is blank. The blank space can be moved, depending on the number of pushes on the set key


202


. When a desired field is blank, the operator inputs a value by the ten keys


199


. The controller


17


then displays the value input by the ten keys


199


in the blank space. The operator re-inputs the value by the ten keys


199


, and pushes the ENT key


205


. Then, the controller


17


updates the UV detection level value stored in the memory to the re-input value. Simultaneously, the controller


17


displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12G

on the function display


208


. At that time, the controller


17


displays the value newly stored in the memory as the UV detection level value.




When the ENT key


205


is pushed while the contents shown in

FIG. 12G

is displayed, the controller


17


displays the contents shown in

FIG. 12A

on the function display


208


, at which point the function setting is completed.




Setting Sorting Process Mode




The setting of the sorting process mode is performed in the standby state in which the function setting is not performed. The controller


17


displays necessary information on the general display


209


and the separate displays


210


to


212


according to the operation for setting the sorting process mode. That is, the controller


17


displays the setting in regard to the entire bill arranger on the general display


209


. The controller


17


displays the setting for the first stacker


69


on the first separate display


210


. Further, the controller


17


displays the setting for the second stacker


70


on the second separate display


211


. Moreover, the controller


17


displays the setting for the third stacker


71


on the third separate display


212


. The operator can confirm the displayed contents, and performs the setting. The controller


17


displays the contents of the setting at each stage on the general display


209


and the separate displays


210


to


212


.




The setting of the sorting process mode is performed by the batch key


188


, the obverse/reverse key


189


, the normal/damaged key


190


, the UV key


191


, the 100 key


192


, the 50 key


193


, the 10 key


194


, and the set key


202


. When setting the sorting process, one of a plurality of the sorting settings, which are shown in the list of

FIG. 13

, is selected. The six keys, which are the obverse/reverse key


189


, the normal/damaged key


190


, the UV key


191


, the 100 key


192


, the 50 key


193


, and the 10 key


194


, are referred to as setting keys


240


.




In

FIG. 13

, the processes marked with ∘ can be combined with the batch process. When an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller selects the sorting process mode, and combines it with the batch process if the combination is possible.




When the batch process is combined, the controller


17


performs the following process. When in the sorting process the bills stacked in at least one of the stackers


69


to


71


reach the batch number, the controller


17


interrupts the sorting process. When the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


detects that the stacked bills S, which have reached the batch number, are removed, the sorting process is restarted.




Alternatively, the controller


17


performs the following process. When in the sorting process the bills stacked in at least one of the stackers


69


to


71


reach the batch number, and when there is another stacker for stacking the same bills, the following bills are stacked in this stacker.




The setting of the sorting process mode will now be explained with reference to FIG.


13


.





FIG. 13

shows an example of the bill arranger used in Japan. In

FIG. 13

, the denomination A is 10,000-yen bills which are represented by “100.” The denomination B is 5,000-yen bills which are represented by “50.” The denomination C is 1,000-yen bills which are represented by “10.”




A denomination sorting mode is selected from the settings 1 to 4. In the denomination sorting mode, the stackers


69


to


71


stack different denominations of bills.




{Setting 1}




According to the setting 1, the first stacker


69


stacks true bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks the true bills of the denomination B, the third stacker stacks the true bills of the denomination C, and the rejecter stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false. When no input is received from the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 1 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 1 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


in the first separate display


210


, and turns off the other content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 50 lamp


230


of the denomination lamps


224


, and turns off the other content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 10 lamp


231


of the denomination lamps


224


, and turns off the other content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 1, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 1 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed by all the stackers


69


to


71


.




{Setting 2}




According to the setting 2, the first stacker


69


stacks true and obverse bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true and obverse bills of the denomination B, the third stacker


71


stacks true and obverse bills of the denomination C, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, and reverse bills of the denominations A, B, and C. When receiving an input only from the obverse/reverse key


189


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 2 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 2 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the obverse lamp


232


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 50 lamp


230


of the denomination lamps


224


and the obverse lamp


232


of the content lamp


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 10 lamp


231


of the denomination lamps


224


and the obverse lamp


232


of the content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 2, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 2 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed by all the stackers


69


to


71


.




{Setting 3}




According to the setting 3, the first stacker


69


stacks true and normal bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true and normal bills of the denomination B, the third stacker


71


stacks the true and normal bills of the denomination C, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, and damaged bills of the denominations A, B, and C. When receiving an input only from the normal/damaged key


190


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 3 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 3 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 50 lamp


230


of the denomination lamps


224


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 10 lamp


231


of the denomination lamps


224


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 3, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 3 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed by all the stackers


69


to


71


.




{Setting 4}




According to the setting 4, the first stacker


69


stacks true, normal, and obverse bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true, normal, and obverse bills of the denomination B, the third stacker


71


stacks true, normal, and obverse bills of the denomination C, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, reverse bills of the denominations A, B, and C, and damaged bills of the denomination A, B, and C. When receiving inputs only from the obverse/reverse key


189


and the normal/damaged key


190


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 4 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 4 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the obverse lamp


232


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 50 lamp


230


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the obverse lamp


232


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 10 lamp


231


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the obverse lamp


232


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 4, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 4 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed by all the stackers


69


to


71


.




A designated denomination sorting mode is selected from the settings 5 to 22. The designated denomination sorting means separating bills of a specified denomination. In the designated denomination sorting mode, the settings 5 to 10 are applied for the denomination A, the settings 11 to 16 are applied for the denomination B, and the settings 17 to 22 are applied for the denomination C.




{Setting 5}




According to the setting 5, the first stacker


69


, the second stacker


70


, and the third stacker


71


successively stack true bills of the denomination A, and the rejecter stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, and true bills other than the denomination A. When receiving an input only from the 100 key


192


, the controller


17


selects the setting 5 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 5 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamps


229


of the denomination lamps


224


in the first to third separate displays


210


to


212


, and turns off the other content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 5, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 5 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed by all the stackers


69


to


71


.




{Setting 6}




According to the setting 6, the first stacker


69


stacks true and obverse bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true and obverse bills of the denomination A, the third stacker


71


stacks true and reverse bills of the denomination A, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, and bills other than the denominations A. When receiving inputs only from the 100 key


192


and the obverse/reverse key


189


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 6 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 6 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the obverse lamp


232


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the obverse lamp


232


of the content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the reverse lamp


233


of the content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 6, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 6 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed by all the stackers


69


to


71


.




{Setting 7}




According to the setting 7, the first stacker


69


stacks true and normal bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true and normal bills of the denomination A, the third stacker


71


stacks true and damaged bills of the denomination A, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, and bills other than the denomination A. When receiving inputs only from the 100 key


192


and the normal/damaged key


190


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 7 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 7 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the damage lamp


235


of the content lamp


235


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 7, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 7 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed only by the stackers


69


and


70


.




{Setting 8}




According to the setting 8, the first stacker


69


stacks true, obverse, and normal bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true, reverse, and normal bills of the denomination A, the third stacker


71


stacks true and damaged bills of the denomination A, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, and bills other than the denomination A. When receiving an input only from the 100 key


192


, the obverse/reverse key


189


, and the normal/damaged key


190


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 8 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 8 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the obverse lamp


232


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the reverse lamp


233


and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


and the damage lamp


235


of the content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 8, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 8 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed only by the stackers


69


and


70


.




{Setting 9}




According to the setting 9, the first stacker


69


stacks true, obverse, and upward bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true, obverse, and inverted bills of the denomination A, the third stacker


71


stacks true and reverse bills of the denomination A, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are false bills, and bills other than the denomination A. When receiving inputs only from the 100 key


192


, the obverse/reverse key


189


, and the UV key


191


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 9 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 9 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the obverse lamp


232


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the obverse lamp


232


of the content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the reverse lamp


233


of the content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 9, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 9 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed only by the stackers


69


and


70


.




{Setting 10}




According to the setting 10, the fist stacker


69


stacks true and normal bills of the denomination A, the second stacker


70


stacks true and damaged bills of the denomination A, the third stacker


71


stacks false bills, and the rejecter


72


stacks the other bills. The bills stacked in the rejecter


72


are bills other than the denomination A. When receiving inputs only from the 100 key


192


, the normal/damaged key


190


, and the UV key


191


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 10 for the sorting process mode.




When the setting 10 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the normal lamp


234


of the content lamps


225


in the first separate display


210


. In the second separate display


211


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and the damage lamp


235


of the content lamps


225


. In the third separate display


212


, the controller


17


turns on only the 100 lamp


229


of the denomination lamps


224


, and turns off all the content lamps


225


.




When, in the sorting process mode according to the setting 10, an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


additionally lights the batch key


188


, and selects the sorting process mode of the setting 10 combined with the batch process. According to this setting, the batch process is performed only by the stacker


69


.




{Setting 11}




The setting 11 is similar to the setting 5, except that the denomination A in the setting 5 is substituted for the denomination B, the 100 key


192


in the setting 5 is substituted for the 50 key


193


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 5 is substituted for the 50 lamp


230


.




{Setting 12}




The setting 12 is similar to the setting 6, except that the denomination A in the setting 6 is substituted for the denomination B, the 100 key


192


in the setting 6 is substituted for the 50 key


193


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 6 is substituted for the 50 lamp


230


.




{Setting 13}




The setting 13 is similar to the setting 7, except that the denomination A in the setting 7 is substituted for the denomination B, the 100 key


192


in the setting 7 is substituted for the 50 key


193


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 7 is substituted for the 50 lamp


230


.




{Setting 14}




The setting 14 is similar to the setting 8, except that the denomination A in the setting 8 is substituted for the denomination B, the 100 key


192


in the setting 8 is substituted for the 50 key


193


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 8 is substituted for the 50 lamp


230


.




{Setting 15}




The setting 15 is similar to the setting 9, except that the denomination A in the setting 9 is substituted for the denomination B, the 100 key


192


in the setting 9 is substituted for the 50 key


193


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 9 is substituted for the 50 lamp


230


.




{Setting 16}




The setting 16 is similar to the setting 10, except that the denomination A in the setting 10 is substituted for the denomination B, the 100 key


192


in the setting 10 is substituted for the 50 key


193


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 10 is substituted for the 50 lamp


230


.




{Setting 17}




The setting 17 is similar to the setting 5, except that the denomination A in the setting 5 is substituted for the denomination C, the 100 key


192


in the setting 5 is substituted for the 10 key


194


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 5 is substituted for the 10 lamp


231


.




{Setting 18}




The setting 18 is similar to the setting 6, except that the denomination A in the setting 6 is substituted for the denomination C, the 100 key


192


in the setting 6 is substituted for the 10 key


194


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 6 is substituted for the 10 lamp


231


.




{Setting 19}




The setting 19 is similar to the setting 7, except that the denomination A in the setting 7 is substituted for the denomination C, the 100 key


192


in the setting 7 is substituted for the 10 key


194


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 7 is substituted for the 10 lamp


231


.




{Setting 20}




The setting 20 is similar to the setting 8, except that the denomination A in the setting 8 is substituted for the denomination C, the 100 key


192


in the setting 8 is substituted for the 10 key


194


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 8 is substituted for the 10 lamp


231


.




{Setting 21}




The setting 21 is similar to the setting 9, except that the denomination A in the setting 9 is substituted for the denomination C, the 100 key


192


in the setting 9 is substituted for the 10 key


194


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 9 is substituted for the 10 lamp


231


.




{Setting 22}




The setting 22 is similar to the setting 10, except that the denomination A in the setting 5 is substituted for the denomination C, the 100 key


192


in the setting 10 is substituted for the 10 key


194


, and the 100 lamp


229


in the setting 10 is substituted for the 10 lamp


231


.




As a true/false bill sorting process, the setting 23 can be selected. In the true/false bill sorting process, the bills are divided into true bills and false bills, and only the true bills are counted.




{Setting 23}




According to the setting 23, the stackers


69


to


71


successively stack the true bills, and the rejecter


72


stack false bills. When receiving an input only from the UV key


191


of the setting keys


240


, the controller


17


selects the setting 23 for the sorting process.




When the setting 23 is selected for the sorting process mode, the controller


17


turns off all the denomination lamps


224


and the content lamps


225


in the first to third separate displays


210


to


212


.




There is no sorting process mode in which the setting 23 is combined with the batch process.




In the settings 1 to 23, when receiving an input from the number/sum key


200


, the controller


17


turns on the number lamps


237


of the number/sum lamps


226


in the separate displays


210


to


212


. When one of the settings 5 to 23 is selected for the designated denomination sorting process, the controller


17


turns on only the number lamp


219


of the general number/sum lamps


222


in the general display


209


because it is important to display the sum. When one of the settings 1 to 4 is selected for the denomination sorting process, the controller


17


automatically turns on the sum lamp


220


of the general number/sum lamps


222


in the general display


209


because it is not important to display the sum.




In the settings 1 to 23, when receiving no input from the number/sum key


200


, the controller


17


turns on only the sum lamps


237


of the number/sum lamps


226


in the separate displays


210


to


212


. Further, the controller


17


turns on only the sum lamp


220


of the general number/sum lamps


222


in the general display


209


.




Therefore, the general display


209


can display which number or sum is selected.




In the settings 1 to 23, when receiving an input from the total key


201


, the controller


17


turns on only the total lamps


218


in the general display


209


. When receiving no input from the total key


201


, the controller


17


turns off the total lamp


218


in the general display


209


.




As described above, one of the sorting process modes is selected by the operating device


15


. Then, according to the selected sorting process mode, the controller


17


displays the contents of the bills sorted in the first stacker


69


on the first separate display


210


, displays the contents of the bills sorted in the second stacker


70


on the second separate display


211


, and displays the contents of the bills sorted in the third stacker


71


on the third separate display


212


.




Next, the operation of the bill arranger will now be explained.




First, the operation will now be explained when one of the sorting process modes is selected by the operating device


15


, and the selected sorting process mode cannot be combined with the batch process.




When the start/stop key


184


is pushed, the controller


17


starts one sorting process. The controller


17


memorizes the priority of the pushed start/stop key


184


, and turns on the priority indicating lamp


214


corresponding to the pushed start/stop key


184


. Simultaneously, in response to the detection of the bills by the bill detecting sensor


44


of the loader


11


, the controller


17


turns on all the clutches


123


of the stackers


69


to


71


. Thus, all the closed shutters


118


of the stackers


69


to


71


are fixed, and the operator cannot manually open them. In this situation, the controller


17


then starts the selected sorting process.




Initially, the controller


17


starts driving the loader


11


and the conveyer


12


by the conveyer drive motor


40


. The bills are loaded one by one from the loader


11


. The controller


17


discriminates and counts the bills, which were loaded from the loader


11


, by the first and second discriminating units


66


and


67


of the discriminating device


13


. The controller


17


controls the sorters


58


to


60


to deliver the bills to one of the stackers


69


to


71


or to the rejecter


72


. In this process, based on the discrimination results obtained by the discriminating device


13


, the bills are delivered to the positions specified in the sorting process mode. Only when the bill is conveyed to the rejecter


72


and the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


of the rejecter


72


detects the bill, the controller


17


turns on the reject indicating lamp


213


.




As shown in

FIG. 4

, when in the stackers


69


to


71


no bill is placed on the guide plates


145


, the lower ends of the guide plates


145


are positioned above and behind the lower end of the front plate


82


by the biasing force of the spring


148


. As the result, the guide plates


145


minimize the capacity of the stacking space


109


. The releasing mechanism


75


delivers the bill into the stacking space


109


, and pushes down the bill by the impeller


102


onto the front plate


82


. Thus, the bill is placed on the guide plates


145


.




As the bills are successively placed on the guide plates


145


, the guide plates


145


are rotated about the bent portion


152


because of the weight of the stacked bills S. As the weight of the stacked bills S increases, the capacity of the stacking space


109


increases.




Finally, based on the detection results from the bill detecting sensors


44


and


64


, the controller


17


detects that all the bills in the loader


11


are sent to the stackers


69


to


71


and to the rejecter


72


. Then, the controller


17


determines the permission of removing the bills from the stackers


69


and


71


. The operator pushes the start/stop key


184


, which has occupied the operation, to open the shutters


118


. The controller


17


then drives all the shutter drive motors


131


of the stackers


69


to


71


to open the shutters


118


. The shutter drive motors


131


are driven until the opened shutter sensor


142


detects the detection portion


121


. Thus, the controller


17


opens all the shutters


118


.




As shown in

FIG. 8

, as all the shutters


118


of the stackers


69


to


71


are opened, all the pushers


154


of the stackers


69


to


71


are rotated. The angle between the pusher


154


and the front plate


82


becomes maximized. The bills S stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


change their positions so that their upper portions are moved toward the upper rear. Thus, the operator can remove the stacked bills S through the output openings


110


.




The remaining bill detecting sensors


111


of the stackers


69


to


71


detect the removal of the stacked bills S. The controller


17


then drives the shutter drive motors


131


in the reverse direction until the closed shutter sensors


141


detect the detection portions


121


. Thus, the controller


17


closes all the shutters


118


.




When all the shutters


118


are closed, the controller


17


completes the sorting process. Simultaneously, the controller


17


turns off the priority indicating lamp


214


corresponding to the start/stop key


184


which has occupied the process.




In the sorting process, the bills may be repeatedly or only once loaded in the loader


11


. In either case, after the completion of the previous process of delivering all the bills from the loader


11


to the stackers


69


to


71


and to the rejecter


72


, removing the bills therefrom, and closing the shutters


118


, one sorting process is defined from the push of start/stop key


184


through the delivery of the bills to the stackers


69


to


71


and to the rejecter


72


, and the removal of the bills therefrom, to the closing of the shutters


118


.




Until all the bills loaded in the loader


11


are delivered to the stackers


69


to


71


and to the rejecter


72


, the controller


17


has determined that the removal of the bills from the stackers


69


to


71


should be prohibited. Therefore, the controller


17


controls the shutter drive motors


131


to keep closing all the shutters


118


.




Further, when the shutter drive motors


131


keep closing the shutters


118


, the clutches


123


fix the gears


124


and the rotational shafts


120


. Thus, the operator cannot manually open the shutters


118


.




Just before detecting that all the bills loaded in the loader


11


are delivered to the stackers


69


to


71


and to the rejecter


72


, the full-state detecting sensor


114


may detect that one of the stackers


69


to


71


and the rejecter


72


is full of bills. The controller


17


then stops the conveyer drive motor


40


to stop driving the loader


11


and the conveyer


12


(this situation is hereinafter referred to as a process interrupted state). Simultaneously, the controller


17


permits the removal of the bills from whichever stackers


69


to


71


and the rejecter


72


is full, and opens the shutter


118


by the shutter drive motor


131


. In addition, the controller


17


turns on the abnormal lamp


217


in the general display


209


. Further, the controller


17


turns on the LED


223


, corresponding to the position where the full-state detecting sensor


114


detects the full state of bills, in the guidance display


216


of the general display


209


.




The full-state detecting sensor


114


, which detected that one of the stackers


69


to


71


and the rejecter


72


was full of bills, then detects that the stacker or the rejecter is not full of bills. The controller


17


judges that the operator removed the bills, and closes the shutter


118


by driving the shutter drive motor


131


. In addition, the controller


17


turns off the abnormal lamp


217


of the general display


209


and the corresponding LED


223


of the guidance display


216


. When the start/stop key


184


, which has occupied the process, is pushed, the controller


17


restarts driving the loader


11


and the conveyer


12


by driving the conveyer drive motor


40


.




When all the bills loaded in the loader


11


are delivered to the stackers


69


to


71


and the rejecter


72


, the controller


17


may open all the shutters


118


of the stackers


69


to


71


regardless of the operation to the start/stop key


184


which has occupied the process.




When the start/stop key, which has occupied the process, is pushed during the execution of the sorting process, the controller


17


stops the conveyer drive motor


40


to stop the loader


11


and the conveyer


12


(this situation will be also referred to as a process interrupted state). Then, when the start/stop key


184


is pushed again, the controller


17


restarts driving the loader


11


and the conveyer


12


by driving the conveyer drive motor


40


.




Next, the operation will now be explained when one of the sorting process modes is selected by the operating device


15


, and the selected sorting process mode is combined with the batch process. In the followings, mainly the differences from the sorting process which cannot be combined with the batch process will be discussed.




The bills are loaded one by one from the loader


11


. The controller


17


discriminates and counts the bills, which were loaded from the loader


11


, by the discriminating device


13


. Based on the discrimination results obtained by the discriminating device


13


, the bills are delivered to one of stackers


69


to


71


or to the rejecter specified in the sorting process mode.




When the bills in one of the stackers


69


to


71


reach the batch number, the controller


17


stops the conveyer drive motor


40


to stop the loader


11


and conveyer


12


(this situation is also included in the process interrupted state). Simultaneously, the controller


17


permits the removal of the bills which have reached the batch number in one of stackers


69


to


71


and the rejecter


72


, and opens the shutter


118


by the shutter drive motor


131


. In addition, the controller


17


turns on the LED


223


, corresponding to the position where the bills have reached the batch number, in the guidance display


216


of the general display


209


.




In one of the stackers


69


to


71


in which the bills have reached the batch number, when the remaining bill detecting sensor


111


detects no bills, the controller


17


judges that all the bills were removed by the operator. Then, the controller


17


closes the shutter


118


by driving the shutter drive motor


131


. When the start/stop key


184


, which has occupied the process, is pushed, the controller


17


restarts driving the loader


11


and the conveyer


12


.




In the following, the display of the values on the display


16


, which is controlled by the controller


17


, will be explained.




When number indication is selected through the number/sum key


200


and subtotal indication is selected through the total key


201


, the controller


17


performs the following control until one sorting process is completed (hereinafter referred to as a display period).




When performing one sorting process according to one of the settings 1 to 22, the controller


17


indicates a present subtotal number of bills stacked in the first stacker


69


on the digital display


227


of the first separate display


210


. Further, the controller


17


indicates a present subtotal number of bills stacked in the second stacker


70


on the digital display


227


of the second separate display


211


. Furthermore, the controller


17


indicates a present subtotal number of bills stacked in the third stacker


71


on the digital display


227


of the third separate display


212


.




When one of the settings 5 to 22 is selected for the sorting process, the controller


17


indicates the present subtotal number of all the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


.




In the case of one of settings 1 to 4 and 23, it is useless to indicate on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


the subtotal number of bills in the stackers


69


to


71


, which stack different denominations. Therefore, even when the number indication is selected, the controller


17


indicates the present subtotal sum of the bills stacked in all the stackers


69


to


71


.




When executing one sorting process according to a setting in which the batch process is enabled, the bills which have reached the batch number may be removed from one of the stackers


69


to


71


during the sorting process. After the removal of the bills, the subtotal value of the stacker is zero, and the number of the removed bills is subtracted from the subtotal value on the general display


209


. Once the bills are removed in one sorting process, the total results of the process cannot be understood only from the subtotal values. Therefore, the controller


17


memorizes the total number of the bills which are delivered to the stackers


69


to


71


. When selecting the total indication by switching the total key


201


, the total values of the stackers


69


to


71


are displayed on the first to third separate displays


210


to


212


, respectively, and their full total value is displayed on the general display


209


.




When the number indication is selected through the number/sum key


200


and total indication is selected through the total key


201


, the controller


17


performs the following display control in the display period. This control is performed in the sorting process of any one of the settings 1 to 22.




The controller


17


indicates the present total number of the bills, which were delivered to the first stacker


69


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the first separate display


210


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the present total number of the bills, which were delivered to the second stacker


70


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the second separate display


211


. Furthermore, the controller


17


indicates the total number of the bills, which were delivered to the third stacker


71


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the third separate display


212


.




When one of the settings 5 to 22 is selected for the sorting process, the controller


17


indicates the present total number of all the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


.




In the case of one of settings 1 to 4 and 23, it is useless to indicate on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


the total number of bills in the stackers


69


to


71


, which stack different denominations. Therefore, even when the number/sum key


200


is switched, the controller


17


indicates the present total sum of the bills stacked in all the stackers


69


to


71


.





FIG. 16A

shows examples of the indication on the digital displays


227


of the first separate display


210


, the second separate display


211


, and the third separate display


212


and on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


, when the number indication is selected through the number/sum key


200


in the sorting process according to the setting 8. All these displays indicate the numbers of the stacked bills.




When the number indication is selected through the number/sum key


200


and total indication is selected through the total key


201


, the controller


17


performs the following display control in the display period. This control is performed in the sorting process of any one of the settings 1 to 23.




The controller


17


indicates the present sum (subtotal) of the bills, which are stacked in the first stacker


69


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the first separate display


210


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the present sum (subtotal) of the bills, which are stacked in the second stacker


70


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the second separate display


211


. Furthermore, the controller


17


indicates the sum (subtotal) of the bills, which are stacked in the third stacker


71


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the third separate display


212


. In addition, the controller


17


indicates the present sub total sum of all the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


.




When the sum indication is selected through the number/sum key


200


and total indication is selected through the total key


201


, the controller


17


performs the following display control in the display period. This control is performed in the sorting process of any one of the settings 1 to 23.




The controller


17


indicates the present sum total of the bills, which were delivered to the first stacker


69


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the first separate display


210


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the present sum total of the bills, which were delivered to the second stacker


70


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the second separate display


211


. Furthermore, the controller


17


indicates the present total sum of the bills, which were delivered to the third stacker


71


in the present sorting process, on the digital display


227


of the third separate display


212


. In addition, the controller


17


indicates the present sub sum of the bills, which were fed into the stackers


69


to


71


in one sorting process, on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


.





FIG. 16B

shows examples of the indication on the digital displays


227


of the first separate display


210


, the second separate display


211


, and the third separate display


212


and on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


, when the sum indication is selected through the number/sum key


200


in the sorting process according to the setting 8. All these displays indicate the sums of the bills.




In the display period in the sorting process combined with the batch process, when an input is received from the batch key


188


, the controller


17


can indicate the present deficiencies in the batch number on the digital displays


227


of the separate displays


210


to


212


corresponding to the stackers


69


to


71


executing the batch processes.




In the mode of any one of the settings 1 to 22, whatever the displays indicate, the displays can be switched to the indication of the deficiencies in the batch number. Only the first separate display


210


, the second separate display


211


, and the third separate display


212


can switch their displayed contents to the indication of the deficiencies.





FIG. 16C

shows examples of the indication on the digital displays


227


of the first separate display


210


, the second separate display


211


, and the third separate display


212


and on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


, when the sorting process is executed according to the setting 1 combined with the batch process. In these examples, no input is received from the batch key


188


, and the numbers of the stacked bills are displayed in a manner similar to the above examples.





FIG. 16D

shows examples of the indication on the digital displays


227


of the first separate display


210


, the second separate display


211


, and the third separate display


212


and on the digital display


221


of the general display


209


, when the sorting process is executed according to the setting 1 combined with the batch process. In these examples, an input is received from the batch key


188


, and all the separate displays


210


to


212


display the deficiencies in the batch number.




In the process interrupted state, when receiving an input from the normal/damaged key


190


, the controller


17


indicates the following details of the damaged notes (see

FIG. 17

) on the function display


208


. This control is performed in the sorting process of any one of the settings 1 to 23.




The controller


17


indicates the character “UF”, which means the damaged bills, and the number of damaged bills (e.g., “30”) side by side on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the character “D”, which means dirtied bills, and the number of dirtied bills (e.g., “20”) side by side on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the character “T”, which means worn bills, and the number of worn bills (e.g., “10”) side by side on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the character “t”, which means bills on which tape are stuck, and the number of the bills with tapes (e.g., “2”) side by side on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the character “d”, which means torn/crumpled bills, and the number of torn/crumpled bills (e.g., “8”) side by side on the function display


208


. When receiving no input from the total key


201


, the controller


17


indicates the details of the damaged bills in the display period in the sorting process.




In the process interrupted state, when receiving an input from the UV key


191


, the controller


17


indicates the following details of false bills on the function display


208


(see FIG.


18


). This control is performed in the sorting process of any one of the settings 1 to 23.




The controller


17


indicates the character “RJ”, which means the false bills, and the false bills (e.g., “3”) side by side on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the character “UV”, which means the bills judged to be false based on the detection of the visible light from the bills produced by ultraviolet light, and the number of the false bills (e.g., “2”) side by side on the function display


208


. Further, the controller


17


indicates the character “MG”, which means the bills judged to be false based on the magnetic data, and the number of the false bills (e.g., “1”) side by side on the function display


208


. When receiving no input from the total key


201


, the controller


17


indicates the details of the false bills in the display period in the sorting process.




According to the bill arranger, when the bills loaded in the loader


11


are fed, the conveyer


12


conveys them. During their conveyance, the bills are discriminated by the discriminating device


13


. Based on the results of the discrimination by the discriminating device


13


, the controller


17


delivers the bills to one of the stackers


69


to


71


by the conveyer


12


according to the selected sorting process selected by the operating device


15


.




Thus, the bills are stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


. The stackers


69


to


71


have the shutters


118


controlled by the controller


17


. When the shutters


118


are opened, the stacked bills can be removed. When the shutters


118


are closed, the bills cannot be removed. Thus, the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


are prevented from being inadvertently removed by the operator.




There are two conditions one in which the removal of the bills from the stackers


69


to


71


is allowed, and another in which the removal of the bills from the stackers


69


to


71


is not allowed. Only when the removal of the bills from the stackers


69


to


71


is allowed, can the controller


17


open the shutters


118


. The bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


are prevented from being inadvertently removed by the operator.




Further, when the shutters


118


are closed, the shutters


118


are fixed so that they cannot be opened. When the shutters are closed, the operator cannot manually open the shutters


118


. The bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


are prevented from being inadvertently removed by the operator.




The stackers


69


to


71


have the pushers


154


for changing the positions of the stacked bills. The pushers


154


changes the positions of the stacked bills by control of the controller


17


when the shutters


118


are opened. The stacked bills, which were hard to remove, become easy to remove. This improves the working efficiency when the operator removes the bills from the stackers


69


to


71


.




As the shutters


118


are opened, the pushers


154


simultaneously change the positions of the bills. The same driving source is used to drive the shutters


118


and to drive the pushers


154


for changing the positions of the bills. The driving source is the shutter drive motor


131


. Thus, the costs are reduced.




Further, the stackers


69


to


71


have the guide mechanisms


144


movable by the weight of the stacked bills delivered to the stackers


69


to


71


by the conveyer


12


. The guide mechanisms


144


reduce the stacking spaces


109


in the stackers


69


to


71


when there is a small amount of bills, and move as the number of bills increases so that the stacking spaces


109


are increased. Therefore, the guide mechanisms


144


narrow the moving range of the bills within the stackers


69


to


71


at the beginning of the process. The bills, which were delivered to the stackers


69


to


71


at the beginning of the process, are stably stacked, and do not interfere with the following bills delivered into the stackers


69


to


71


by the conveyer


12


so that the bills are regularly stacked. Even when the capacities of the stackers


69


to


71


are increased, the bills, delivered into the stackers


69


to


71


by the conveyer


12


, can be securely stacked.




Further, the guide mechanisms


144


move by the weight of the bills delivered into the stackers


69


to


71


by the conveyer


12


. The movement of the guide mechanisms


144


is not based on the thickness of the stacked bills. Therefore, the delivered bills can be freely delivered into the stackers


69


to


71


by the conveyer


12


.




In the guide mechanism


144


, the guide plates


145


reduce the capacities of the stacking spaces


109


in the stackers


69


to


71


by the urging force of the springs


148


when the stacked bills S are light, and move as the weight of bills increases so that the capacities of the stacking spaces


109


are increased. With this simple construction, the moving range of the bills within the stackers


69


to


71


is narrowed at the beginning of the process. Thus, the guide mechanisms


144


can be simplified.




Further, the guide mechanisms


144


are rotatably attached to the stackers


69


to


71


. The guide mechanisms


144


reduce the capacities of the stacking spaces


109


in the stackers


69


to


71


when there is a small amount of stacked bills, and are rotated as the number of bills increases so that the capacities of the stacking spaces


109


are increased. The construction for narrowing the moving range of the bills within the stackers


69


to


71


at the beginning of the process can be further simplified.




The guide mechanisms


144


are rotatably attached to the output openings


110


of the stackers


69


to


71


, and do not narrow the output openings


110


. Thus, the operator can easily remove the bills through the output openings


110


from the stackers


69


to


71


.




The guide mechanism


144


may be made from deformable elastic resin which can be deformed by the weight of the bills delivered into the stackers


69


to


71


by the conveyer


12


. This elastic deformable resin guide mechanisms


144


reduce the capacities of the stacking spaces


109


in the stackers


69


to


71


when there is a small amount of bills, and are deformed as the number of bills increases so that the capacities of the stacking spaces


109


are increased. With this simple construction, the moving range of the bills within the stackers


69


to


71


is narrowed at the beginning of the process.




When one of the sorting process modes is selected through the operating device


11


, the separate displays


210


to


212


display the respective details of the sorting of the stackers


69


to


71


according to the sorting process mode selected through the operating device


11


.




The respective separate displays


210


to


212


display how the bills are sorted into the stackers


69


to


71


. Even when various sorting processes are selectable, the operator can easily confirm the details of the sorting of the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


.




Because the separate displays


210


to


212


display at least one of the number and the sum of the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


, the operator can easily recognize the respective amounts of the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


.




Further, the general display


209


is provided in common to the stackers


69


to


71


. The general display


209


displays the total number or the total sum of the bills in all the stackers


69


to


71


which is the information common to all the stackers


69


to


71


. Thus, the operator can recognize the information common to all the stackers


69


to


71


.




When the general display


209


displays the number or sum of the bills stacked in the stackers


69


to


71


, the controller


17


indicates whether the number display or the sum display is selected, by turning on the number lamp


219


or the sum lamp


220


. The operator can recognize whether the number or the sum of the bills is displayed.




The characters printed on the keys of the operating device are not limited to those in the embodiment. For instance, the characters on the 100 key


192


, the 50 key


193


, and the 10 key


194


may be substituted for other characters. Further, the characters “100”, “50”, and “10”, which represents the denominations, on the first separate display


210


, the second separate display


211


, the third separate display


212


, the general display


209


, and the function display


208


may be substituted for other characters.




While the embodiment of the bill arranger is used in Japan, the invention may be used in the other countries, and the contents displayed on the displays may be modified according to the language and the denominations of the countries.




The respective stackers have the separate displays. The respective separate displays display how the bills are sorted into the stackers. Even when various sorting processes are selectable, the operator can easily confirm the details of the sorting of the bills stacked in the stackers.




When one of the sorting process modes is selected with said operating device, the controller indicates the respective details of sorting of the stackers according to the selected sorting process mode on said corresponding displays.




The respective separate displays display how the bills are sorted into the stackers. Even when various sorting processes are performed, the operator can easily confirm the details of the sorting of the bills stacked in the stackers according to the selected sorting process mode.




The displays indicate at least one of the number and sum of the bills stacked in the stackers. Because each display displays at least one of the number and the sum of the bills stacked in the stacker, the operator can easily recognize the respective amounts of the bills stacked in the stackers.




Further, the general display is provided in common for all the stackers, and can change the displayed contents.




The general display displays the total number or the total sum of the bills in all the stackers which is the information common to all the stackers. Thus, the operator can recognize the information common to all the stackers.




The general display indicates at least one of the total number and the total sum of all the bills stacked in the stackers. Thus, the operator can recognize the information common to all the stackers.




The general display indicates one of the total number and the total sum of all the bills stacked in said stackers, and indicates whether the total number or the total sum is selected. The operator can recognize whether the number or the sum of the bills is displayed.




This invention may be embodied in other forms or carried out in other ways without departing from the spirit thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects illustrative and not limiting, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims, and all modifications falling within the meaning and range of equivalency are intended to be embraced therein.



Claims
  • 1. A bill arranger comprising:a loader for loading bills and feeding the bills one by one; a conveyer for conveying the bills fed from said loader; a discriminating device for discriminating the bills conveyed by said conveyer; a plurality of stackers for stacking the bills conveyed thereto by said conveyer, so that the bills can be removed; an operating device for selecting one of a plurality of sorting process modes to define a method of sorting the bills loaded in said loader; a controller for delivering each bill via said conveyor to one of said stackers based on the results of the discrimination thereof by said discriminating device and, according to the selected sorting process mode; and a plurality of separate displays, each provided in a vicinity of a respective one of said stackers, to display the contents of said respective stacker, wherein, when one of said plurality of sorting process modes is selected with said operating device, said separate displays are adapted to indicate the respective details of sorting of said stackers according to the selected sorting process mode, and further comprising a general display in common for all said stackers, said general display indicating at least one of the total number and the total sum of all the bills stacked in said stackers, and indicating which one of the total number and the total sum is indicated.
  • 2. A bill arranger according to claim 1, wherein said separate displays indicate at least one of the number and sum of the bills stacked in said respective stackers.
  • 3. A bill arranger according to claim 1, wherein said separate displays are located in the vicinity of output openings of the respective stackers.
  • 4. A bill arranger for sorting and stacking bills, comprising:a loader for receiving a stack of bills to be sorted and for feeding bills one by one from said stack; a conveyer assembly for conveying bills fed from said loader; a discriminating device for discriminating bills conveyed by said conveyer; a plurality of stackers for receiving and stacking bills conveyed thereto by said conveyor; an operating device for selecting one of a plurality of sorting process modes to define a method of sorting the bills loaded in said loader; a controller for delivering bills to said stackers via said conveyer based upon a result of the discrimination thereof by said discriminating device and according to the selected sorting process mode; and a plurality of separate display units, a said display unit being disposed adjacent each said stacker to display a content of said respective stacker, wherein when one of said plurality of sorting process modes is selected with said operating device, said display units are adapted to indicate the respective details of sorting of said stackers according to the selected sorting process mode, and further comprising a general display in common for all said stackers, said general display indicating at least one of the total number and the total sum of all the bills stacked in said stackers, and indicating which one of the total number and the total sum is indicated.
  • 5. A bill arranger according to claim 4, wherein said discriminating device includes a first discriminating unit for at least one of detecting image data of bills conveyed by the conveyor and detecting magnetic data from materials contained in ink on the bills conveyed by the conveyor and outputs results of detection to the controller.
  • 6. A bill arranger according to claim 5, wherein the discriminating device further comprises a second discriminating unit for emitting ultraviolet light on bills conveyed by the conveyor and for detecting light reflected from the bill, and outputs the results of detection to the controller.
  • 7. A bill arranger according to claim 4, wherein each said display unit displays data related to said respective stacker, said data comprising at least one of a number and a sum of bills stacked in said respective stacker.
  • 8. A bill arranger according to claim 4, wherein each said display unit is provided adjacent an output opening of said respective stacker.
Priority Claims (1)
Number Date Country Kind
11-064111 Mar 1999 JP
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