US2754951A - Change making machine - Google Patents

Description

July 17, 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet Filed June 27 1951 Rom/.0 GALE INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY July 17, 1956 -R GALE CHANGE MAKING MACHINE Filed June 27, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 17, 1956 R. GALE I CHANGE MAKING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June 27, 1951 7 a Z K n t "m r a l! 0 Nu 1 I 3 .QHII 5 42 0 v 2 2. 8 :3 0 l 4 .v. z .6 3 5 1/, I 4. 7 2 7 H 6 7 W 4 W 1 I 6 I 0 Kw I I w a I. a 7. 5 cu i w A TTORNEY IN V EN TOR.

Rom/1L0 GALE United States Patent CHANGE MAKING MACHINE Ronald Gale, Dallas, Tex., assignor to Silver King Corp, Aurora, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application June 27, 1951, Serial No. 233,874

4 Claims. (Cl. 19491) This invention relates to coin operated mechanisms and more particularly to a coin changing mechanism.

In many applications, such as vending machines, it is desirable to provide a coin changing mechanism so that customers not provided with a coin of proper denomination for purchasing the article vended by the machine may insert a coin of larger denomination and receive in return the vended article and the proper change. For example, the vended article may cost a nickel and it may be desired to provide a coin operated mechanism which will dispense the vended article only if a nickel is deposited in one slot, which will dispense the vended article and a nickel in change if a dime is deposited in a second slot, and which will dispense the vended article and four nickels in change if a quarter is deposited in a third slot. In order that the coin changing mechanism be operable over a long period of time, it is desirable that the coins of lowest denomination, i. e., the nickels, be deposited in a coin magazine from which the proper number of nickels is dispensed when a dime or quarter is deposited in the machine.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved coin operated mechanism.

It is another object of this invention to provide a new and improved coin changing mechanism.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a new and improved coin changing mechanism for a vending machine which dispenses both the vended article and the proper change if a coin of larger denomination than the price of the article is deposited in the coin changing mechanism.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a new and improved coin changing mechanism which selectively dispenses different numbers of coins from a common coin magazine.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a new and improved coin operated mechanism in which coins of a lower denomination are deposited in a coin magazine from which proper different numbers of coins are selectively dispensed when coins of different higher denominations are inserted in the machine.

Briefly stated, the new and improved coin operated mechanism of the drawing includes a first coin receiver which receives coins of the lowest denomination, e. g., a nickel and upon actuation of a lever carries the nickel to a coin magazine. During the course of its travel in the first coin receiver, the nickel cams a pivoted lever to actuate an article dispensing mechanism. A second coin receiver is provided with two recesses to receive a dime and quarters, respectively, and is rigidly secured to a rotatable operating shaft. A pair of superposed slidable plates are provided with registerable apertures which are normally disposed beneath the open end of the coin magazine and which receive the lowermost nickels from the magazine. The upper plate is three times as thick as the lower slidable plate. Each slide is provided with a rack which is engaged by a sector gear rotatably mounted on the operating shaft. A pair of 'ice clutches, one operable by a dime in one recess and the other by a quarter in the other recess of a coin receiver, are employed selectively to lock the operating shaft to either the sector gear which engages the rack of the upper slidable plate or the sector gear which engages the rack of the lower slidable plate. The gear and rack acsemblies move either both the slidable plates or only the lower slidable plate past the open end of the coin magaizine. When both plates are moved outward-1y, four nickels are carried outwardly and dispensed from the magazine. When only the lower plate is moved outwardly, only one nickel is carried outwardly and dispensed from the coin magazine. The dime or nickel in the coin receiver also actuate levers linked to the article dispensing mechanism so that an article is dispensed each time the slidable plates are moved outwardly to dispense change.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing,

Figure l is a perspective View of the coin changing mechanism with one side removed to show elements hidden thereby;

Figure 2 is an elevation of one side of the coin changing device with the nearest side plate removed;

Figure 3 is an elevation of the other side of the coin changing device with the nearest side plate removed and some parts broken away;

Figure 4 is a side view of the coin changing device with some parts removed, others broken away, and others shown in section, illustrating the relative positions of the elements of the device in rest position;

Figure 5 is a side view similar to Figure 4 showing the relative positions of the elements of the device after the operating shaft has been rotated a certain distance in a coin changing operation;

Figure 6 is a side view similar to Figure 5 showing the relative positions of the elements of the device after the operating shaft has been rotated to a position in which the slidable plates have been moved outwardly to dispense change;

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the base of the device; and,

Figure 8 is a perspective view of the bottom side of the lower slidable plate.

Referring now to the drawing, the coin changing mechanism ll) includes a base 11 having a raised forward portion 12 provided with a longitudinal horizontal slot 13 and a vertical aperture 1 5 communicating with the longitudinal slot. A coin barrel or magazine 15 is disposed in the vertical aperture 14 over a pair of superposed sliding plates 16 and 17 which rest on the base 11 and extend through the horizontal slot 13. The sliding plates 16 and 17 are provided with registerable circular apertures 18 and 19, respectively, into which coins from the magazine may descend. The upper plate 16 is approximately three times as thick as the lower plate 17 so that three coins may be disposed in the aperture 18 of the upper plate while only one may be disposed in the aperture 19 of the lower plate. It will now be apparent that if both sliding plates are moved outwardly past the magazine 15, four coins will be carried past the end of the base 11 (Fig. 4). However, if only the lower plate 17 is moved outwardly, only the coin disposed in its aperture 19 will be carried outwardly past the end of the base 11. By providing means selectively to move only the lower plate 17 or both the upper and lower plates simultaneously, either one or four coins may be dispensed.

In order to force the lower plate 16 to move outwardly whenever the upper plate 17 is moved outwardly, the upper plate 16 is provided with a screw 20 which extends downwardly through the upper plate into a longitudinal slot 21 provided in the rear end of the lower plate. The screw 20 abuts the end portion 22 of the lower plate which defines the inner end of the slot 21 and moves the lower plate outwardly whenever the upper plate is moved but allows outward movement of the lower plate without simultaneous outward movement of the upper plate. The outward movement of the lower plate with respect to the base 11 is limited by the screws 23 and 24 on the bottom side of the lower plate which will abut the inner end 25 of the base which defines the end of the slot 26 of the base.

The inward or rearward movement of the sliding plates 16 and 17 is limited by stops 27 and 28, respectively, secured to the outer ends of the plates by screws 29 and 30, respectively. The stops 27 and 28 abut the outer end 31 of the base to arrest further inward movement.

A housing 32 having sides 33 and 34 connected by rear portions 35 and 36 is secured to the sides of the base 11 by screws. A pair of springs 38 and 39 secured to the rear portion 36 and the inner ends of the upper and lower plates 16 and 17, respectively, bias the slidable plates inwardly.

In order to move the plates outwardly against the resistance of the springs, the plates 16 and 17 have secured to them the rearwardly extending gear racks 40 and 41, respectively. The gear rack 40 is secured to the upper plate 16 by screws 42 and lies between a side of the upper plate and the side 34 of the housing while the gear rack 41 is secured to the lower plate 17 by screws 43 and lies between the opposite side of the upper plate and the side 33 of the housing.

The gear racks 40 and 41 are engaged by the sector gears 45 and 46, respectively, which are rotatably mounted on a rotatable operating shaft 47 journaled in the sides 33 and 34 of the housing 32 above the gear racks. It will be apparent that if the sector gear 45 is rotated counterclockwise as seen in Figures 1, 2 and 4 to 6, the rack gear 40 will be moved to the right. Both slidable plates will thus be moved outwardly each time the sector gear 45 is rotated counterclockwise. If the sector gear 46 is rotated clockwise, Figure 3, the gear rack 41 will be moved to the left and only the lower slidable plate 17 will be moved outwardly.

A coin receiver 48 rigidly mounted on the operating shaft 47 is provided with a pair of clutch arms 49 and 50 which are employed to rotate the sector gears. The clutch arm 49 has a laterally extending finger 51 which is adapted to engage a cam 52 rotatably mounted on the operating shaft 47 and rigidly secured to the sector gear. The clutch arm 49 has its upper end pivotally secured, as at 53, to a forward side portion of the coin receiver 48. In order that the finger 51 engage the cam 52 only when a coin is in the recess 54 of the coin receiver 48, a lock arm 55 is pivotally secured, at its upper end, as at 56 to an actuating member 57. The actuating member 57 is pivotally mounted on a pin 58 which extends through registering apertures in the sides 33 and 34 of the housing 32. The lower forward face of the actuating member 57 is provided with a groove 59 to receive the upper edge of a coin disposed in the recess 54 of the coin receiver 48. The groove 59 is rather shallow and serves merely as a guide to prevent sidewise movement between the coin and the actuating member. The actuating member 57 is biased toward the coin receiver by a spring 60 one of whose ends is received in a recess 61 in the actuating member and whose other end abuts a forwardly and upwardly extending tab 62 integral with the rear portion 35 of the housing 32.

The lock arm 55 is provided with an elongated slot 63 through which the operating shaft 47 extends and an irregularly shaped slot 64 through which extends the finger 51 of the clutch arm 49. The lock arm 55 has a camming projection 65 which extends into the irregularly shaped slot 64. If a coin is not deposited in the recess 54 of the coin receiver, counterclockwise (Figures 4 to 6) rotation of the operating shaft 47 will cause the finger 51 of the clutch arm to be cammed outwardly by the camming projection 65 as the coin receiver is rotated counterclockwise raising the clutch arm 49. This outward move ment of the finger 51 prevents engagement of the cam 52 by the finger. If, however, a coin 66 is in the recess 54, counterclockwise rotation of the operating shaft 47, the upper edge of the coin 66 will enter the groove 59 of the actuating member 57 and will cause the actuating member to pivot upwardly about the pin 57. The lock arm 55 will then be moved upwardly and to the left (Figs. 4 to 6) and the edge 67 of the slot 64 will contact the finger 51 and move it also upwardly and to the left from the position shown in Figure 4 so that the finger 51 will be moved into the position shown in Figure 5 in which it engages the cam 52. Still further counter cloekwise rota tion of the operating shaft will now cause the sector gear 45 to rotate in a counter-clockwise manner moving the rack gear 40 outwardly. The upper slidable plate 16 and the lower slidable plate 17 will thus be moved outwardly when the operating shaft 47 is rotated in a counterclockwise manner. An operating handle 68 is rigidly secured to an end of the operating shaft by means of a set screw 69.

The coin 66 in the recess 54 will fall out of the recess when the operating shaft 47 and the coin receiver 48 are rotated to the position shown in Figure 6. A suitable receptacle, not shown, may be provided below the coin changer mechanism to receive the coins which fall from the recess 54. After the coin 66 has dropped out of the recess 54 and the coins 70 have fallen out of the apertures 18 and 19 in the slidable plates 16 and 17, the operating shaft may be rotated in the reverse direction to bring back the lock arm 55 and the clutch arm 49 to the position shown in Figure 4. If another coin is now deposited in the recess 54, the above cycle of operations can be repeated to dispense the next four coins from the coin magazine 15.

The clutch arm 50 operates in the same manner as the clutch arm 49 to lock the operating shaft 47 to the sector gear 46. The clutch arm 50 is pivoted at its upper end, as at 71, to the coin receiver 48 and is provided at its lower end with a laterally extending finger 72. The finger 72 projects through an irregularly shaped slot 73 in the lower end of a lock arm 74 whose upper end is pivotally secured, as at 75, to an actuating member 76. The actuating member 76 has a forward portion projecting over a recess 77, shallower than the recess 54, in the coin receiver 48 and has its rear end pivotally mounted on the pin 58. The actuating member 76 is similar to the actuating member 57 operatively associated with the recess 54 and is similarly biased downwardly by a spring 78. The clutch arm 50, the lock arm 74 and the cam 79 rigidly secured to the sector gear 46 cooperate in the same manner as the correponding elements associated with the sector gear 45, to rotate the sector gear in a clockwise direction, as seen in Figure 3, when a small coin 80 is disposed in the recess 77 and the operating shaft is rotated. Since the sector gear 46 engages the gear rack 41, only the lower slidable plate 17 is moved outwardly and a single coin will be dispensed from the coin magazine 15.

An L-shaped bracket 81 has its horizontal leg 82 secured to the actuating member 76 by a screw 83. The leg 82 projects over the actuating member 57 so that a link 84 pivotally secured to the vertical leg 85 of the bracket will be moved upwardly whenever a large coin 66 is in the recess 54 as well as when a small coin 80 is in the recess 77. The upper end of the link 84 is pivotally secured to one end of a bell crank lever 86 which is rotatably secured to a shaft 87.

The other end of the bell crank lever 86 is connected by a link 88 to a T-shaped lever 89 pivotally attached to a fixed structure of a vending machine as at 90. The opposite ends of the link 88 are pivotally secured tothe levers 86 and 89 in any conventional manner. The T shaped lever is also provided with'a laterally extending pin 91 which engages the edge of a coin carried in a coin receiver 92 which is rigidly secured to a rotatable shaft 93. The shaft 93 is rotated by a handle 94.

A triple coin chute 95, not shown in detail since it is conventional in the art, has three slots into one of which may be inserted a nickel 96 which falls into a suitable recess in a coin receiver 97. The nickel 96 earns the pin 91 upwardly so that the pin 91 moves out of the path of travel of the stop 93 of the coin receiver 92. Clockwise movement of the handle 94 through a considerable angle past the position 94a can therefore take place when a nickel 96 is carried by the coin receiver 92. Only limited clockwise movement of the shaft 93 can take place when the pin 91 of the T-shaped lever is disposed in the path of travel of the stop 98. The shaft 93 actuates an article dispensing mechanism (not shown) when the handle 94 is moved past the position 94a.

Another slot of the coin chute receives dimes which are guided to fall into the recess 77 of the coin receiver 48. The third slot of the coin chute receives quarters which are guided to fall into the recess 54 of the coin receiver 48.

In use, if a nickel 96 is deposited in the vending machine, it falls into the recess in the coin receiver 92 and, when the handle 94 is moved in a clockwise manner, the edge of the nickel 96 earns the pin 91 and pivots the T-shaped lever 89 upwardly so that the pin 91 is moved out of the direction of travel of the stop 98. The handle 94 can then be moved past the position 94a and the shaft 93 is rotated to actuate the article dispensing mechanism. The nickel 96 then falls through a chute 100 into the coin magazine 15.

If a dime 80 is inserted in the mechanism it falls through its portion of the chute 95 into the recess 77 of the coin receiver 48. If the handle 68 is now pivoted to the left (Figure l) the dime 80 will cam the actuating member 76 upwardly. The bracket 81 will also be moved upwardly and acting through the linkage 84, 86 and 87 will move the pin 91 out of the path of travel of the stop 98 so that the handle 94 may be moved past position 94a to vend an article. The actuating member 76 will also move lock arm 74 to engage the finger 72 of the clutch arm 50 and, through the engagement of the cam 79 and the finger 72, cause the sector gear 46 to rotate. The lower sliding plate will be moved outwardly to dispense a nickel in change from the coin magazine 15. The dime will, of course, fall out of the recess 77 after the handle 68 is pivoted past a predetermined position and may be deposited in any suitable receptacle positioned beneath the coin changing mechanism 10.

If a quarter 66 is deposited in the machine, it falls through its portion of the chute 95 into the recess 54 of the coin changer 48. If the handle 63 is now pivoted, the edge of the quarter 66 will cam the actuating member 57 upwardly. Since the top surface of the actuating member abuts the horizontal leg 82 of the L-shaped bracket 81, the bracket 81 will be lifted, thus again causing the pin 91 on the T-shaped lever 89 to be moved out of the path of travel of the stop 98. The handle 94 can then again be pivoted a sufiicient distance to vend an article. When the handle 68 Was pivoted, the actuating member 57, clutch arm 49, lock arm 55 and the cam 52 cooperated in the manner described above to rotate the sector gear 45 and move both slidable plates 16 and 17 outwardly to dispense four nickels from the coin magazine 15.

If desired, the handles 68 and 94 may be linked mechanically so that only handle 94 need be operated regardless of the denomination of the coin used. The coin receiver 48 can, of course, be rotated without lifting the bracket 81 the necessary distance to move the pin 91 out of the path of travel of the stop 98 as long as the recesses 54 and 77 are empty.

It will be seen now, that the coin changing mechanism 10 may be used in an article dispensing device and will receive either a nickel, dime, or quarter and dispense an article costing a nickel and the appropriate amount of change. Moreover, it will be seen that all nickels deposited in the machine fall into the coin magazine from where they may be dispensed to make change if a dime or quarter is subsequently deposited in the coin magazine. The coin changing mechanism may be easily changed for use solely as a device for dispensing two nickels, when a dime is deposited and five nickels when a quarter is deposited by increasing the thickness of the lower slidable plate 17 so that two nickels may be received in the aperture 19 of the lower plate.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the illustrated coin changing mechanism without departing from the invention and it is intended, therefore, in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a change making mechanism, a base, a transverse shaft journaled in said base having an operating handle, a gear rack mounted for longitudinal sliding displacement in said base, a sector gear rotatably mounted on said shaft and engaging said gear rack, a cam carried by said sector gear, a coin receiver rigidly mounted on said shaft having a coin receiving recess, a clutch arm pivotally mounted on said coin receiver, means on said clutch arm for engaging and actuating said cam, an actuating member pivotally mounted on said base having a free end overlying the coin receiving recess of said coin receiver, a locking arm pivoted at one end to said actuating member and having a slot in its opposite end receiving said shaft, said locking arm being effective to actuate said clutch arm and cam to oscillate said sector gear when a coin in said coin receiving recess engages and elevates said actuating member upon movement of said operating handle.

2. In a change making mechanism, a base, a transverse shaft journaled in said base, a member slidable longitudinally in said base, a member freely mounted on said shaft and engaging said slidable member for moving the same, a coin receiver afiixed to said shaft having a coin receiving recess, an actuating member pivoted at one end to said base and overlying said coin receiving recess at its opposite end to be raised by a coin in said recess when said shaft is rotated, a cam on said freely mounted member, a clutch arm pivoted to said coin receiver and means pivotally connected to said actuating member for effecting engagement of said clutch arm with said cam upon movement of said actuating member to secure said freely mounted member for rotation with said shaft to effect sliding displacement of said slidable member.

3. In a change making machine, a base, a gear rack reciprocable in said base, a transverse shaft journalled in said base, a sector gear rotatably mounted on said shaft and having meshing engagement with said gear rack, a cam free to rotate on said shaft and secured to said sector gear, a coin receiver secured to said shaft and having a coin receiving recess, a clutch arm pivoted to said coin receiver and engageable with said cam, a'n actuating member pivotally mounted on said base and provided with a free end overlying the coin receiving recess of said coin receiver, a locking arm pivotally connected at one end to the actuating member and at its other end provided with a slot for receiving said shaft, said locking arm being effective to actuate said clutch arm and cam to oscillate said sector gear and reciprocate said rack when a coin in said coin receiving recess en- 7 gages and elevates said actuating member upon rotation of said shaft.

4. In a coin changing mechanism, a base, a transverse shaft secured to said base, a first means rotatably mounted on said transverse shaft, 21 second means rotatably mounted on said transverse shaft, said first and second means each including a cam, means rigidly mounted on said shaft and having a pair of coin receiving recesses, a pair of coin actuated clutch means for selectively locking said first and second means to said rotatable shaft, each of said clutch means including a clutch arm pivotally mounted on said coin receiver and having means for contacting and rotating said cam, a pair of actuating members pivotally mounted on said base and each having a portion extending over an associated recess in said coin receiver, and a. locking arm pivotally mounted on each of said actuating members for moving said clutch arm means into engagement with said cam,

said locking arm moving said clutch arm means into engagement with said cam when a coin is disposed in said associated recess to pivot its actuating member and move said locking arm.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 673,704 Di Marco May 7, 1901 712,911 Cox Nov. 4, 1902 788,187 Burdick Apr. 25, 1905 1,325,766 Thompson Dec. 23, 1919 2,036,970 Porter Apr. 7, 1936 2,250,051 Patzer July 22, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS 594,584 Germany Mar. 30, 1934 2,002 Great Britain of 1909 125,832 Austria Dec. 10, 1931

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