Added: 02/13/2006 |
Money detector devicesCurrency detector is a device that determines if a piece of currency is, or is not, counterfeit. These devices are used in modern machines that accept payment and dispense product to a customer. They are also used in change machines and in slot machines.
The basic process involves looking at the currency that has been inserted and by using various tests, determine if the currency is counterfeit. Since the parameters are different for each coin detector or paper money detector, these money detectors must be programed for each item that they need to accept.
In operation, if the item is accepted it is retained by the machine and placed in a storage device. If the item is rejected, the money detector returns the item. If it is a coin, it usually drops into a container for the customer to take back. If it is a bill, the money detector pushes the bill out and the customer must remove it from the slot it was placed in.
The basic principle for money detector is to somehow test the physical properties of the coin against known composites from coinage that is acceptable. Some of the first designs usage of weight failed to stop people from creating slugs of cheaper metal that weighed close enough to real currency to fool the mechanics of detection. Nowadays it is common to use a laser and electrical current to test various characteristics of the inserted coin that has virtually eliminated the problem as any significant amounts of currency are in paper and electronic form.
Also known as bill validators or bill acceptors, paper currency detectors scan pliant currency using optical and magnetic sensors. Upon validation a series of pulses is generated using a multi-drop bus communications configuration which is then sent to the vending machine controller.
A bill validator, bill acceptor, or currency acceptor, is a component of electronic vending machines and other devices that accept paper currency. They were introduced in the U.S. in the early 1980s. While in the past these devices were extremely succeptible to failure and jamming due to folded or damaged notes, they have improved remarkably in recent years and now include such features as automatic jam ejection and automatically calibrating sensors. Cleaning cards are available to remove contaminants from the machines.
Such devices are found in places that have a need to accept paper currency without requiring the presence of a human attendant. Machines that have need of bill validators include coin operated video games, vending machines, slot machines, kiosks, or almost any other self service location that requires a fee.
There are currently only a handful of companies in the world manufacturing this type of equipment. Mars Electronics International (MEI), Japan Cash Machine (JCM), and Coin Controls (CoinCo) are three of the largest, each maintaining dominance in a particular market segment. Other notable companies producing this type of equipment include Pyramid Technologies, International Currency Technologies (ICT), Validation Technologies International (VTI), and Innovative Technologies (Smiley).
A coin acceptor, also known as a coin mechanism or coin mech or money detector is a device that recognises coins. It is built into vending machines, arcade cabinets, etc. It performs its function by evaluating the coin based on its weight, size, and/or magnetism, and then sends an appropriate electrical signal via its output connection. The next step is generally performed by the coin changer.
Simple mechanical coin acceptors are relatively easy to cheat by using slugs and other coin-like materials that pass the rudimentary validation. Today, sophisticated electronic coin acceptors are in use in some places that, in addition to validating weight and size, also "look" at the deposited coin using optics and match the image to a pre-defined list.
Normal coins pick up microscopic deposits from human fingers. When a coin acceptor is used long enough, thousands of coins rolling down a ramp will leave enough dirt to be visible. The acceptor needs to be washed sometime before it jams up. Some new types of coin acceptors are able to recognize the coins through training, so they will support any types of coins or tokens.
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