Card reader and card lock mechanism

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016358044-A1
Application number	US-201615171245-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 2, 2016
Priority date	Jun 3, 2015
Publication date	Dec 8, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A card reader may include a card insertion port; a card conveying passage; and a card lock mechanism structured to prevent drawing of the card from the card insertion port. The card lock mechanism may include a motor; a lock member comprising a prevention pawl structured to move between a contact position and a retreated position; and a power transmission mechanism structured to transmit power of the motor to the lock member. The power transmission mechanism may include a final gear which is disposed on a most lock member side in a transmitting direction of power from the motor to the lock member. The lock member may include a sector gear which is engaged with the final gear.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A card reader for use with a card, the card reader comprising:
a card insertion port into which the card is inserted and from which the card is ejected; a card conveying passage where the card inserted from the card insertion port is conveyed; and a card lock mechanism structured to prevent drawing of the card from the card insertion port when the card is abnormally stopped in the card conveying passage and the card is clogged in the card conveying passage; wherein the card lock mechanism comprises:
a motor;
a lock member comprising a prevention pawl configured to contact with the card for preventing drawing of the card and structured to move between a contact position where the prevention pawl is contacted with the card and a retreated position where the prevention pawl is retreated from the card conveying passage by power transmitted from the motor; and
a power transmission mechanism structured to transmit power of the motor to the lock member;
wherein the power transmission mechanism comprises a final gear which is disposed on a most lock member side in a transmitting direction of power from the motor to the lock member; and wherein the lock member comprises a sector gear which is engaged with the final gear.

2 . The card reader according to claim 1 , wherein
the power transmission mechanism comprises:
a worm gear comprising a screw gear fixed to an output shaft of the motor and a helical gear engaged with the screw gear;
a first rotation shaft to which the helical gear is fixed;
a first gear which is fixed to the first rotation shaft;
a second gear to which power from the first gear is transmitted;
a second rotation shaft which is disposed in parallel to the first rotation shaft and by which the second gear is relatively turnably held;
the final gear which is fixed to the second rotation shaft;
two gear side pins which are fixed to a side face of the second gear so as to protrude in an axial direction of the second rotation shaft; and
a shaft side pin which is fixed to the second rotation shaft so as to protrude to both sides in a radial direction of the second rotation shaft and to be capable of contacting with the two gear side pins,
wherein a pin clutch comprises the two gear side pins and the shaft side pin, wherein the motor is disposed so that a thickness direction of the card conveyed along the card conveying passage and an axial direction of the output shaft are parallel to each other, wherein the first rotation shaft and the second rotation shaft are disposed so that a width direction of the card perpendicular to a conveying direction of the card conveyed along the card conveying passage and a thickness direction of the card is parallel to axial directions of the first rotation shaft and the second rotation shaft, wherein the card lock mechanism comprises a fixed shaft turnably holding the lock member or a turnable shaft turning together with the lock member, and wherein the lock member is turned with the fixed shaft or the turnable shaft as a center and is moved between the contact position and the retreated position.

3 . The card reader according to claim 2 , wherein the second rotation shaft is disposed between one end of the motor and the other end of the motor in the thickness direction of the card.

4 . The card reader according to claim 2 , wherein
the first gear and the second gear are disposed on one side in the width direction of the card relative to the helical gear, the final gear and the lock member are disposed on the other side in the width direction of the card relative to the helical gear, and the output shaft, the first rotation shaft, the second rotation shaft and the fixed shaft or the turnable shaft are disposed in this order in the conveying direction of the card.

5 . The card reader according to claim 2 , wherein
when one side in the width direction of the card is referred to as a first direction and the other side in the width direction of the card is referred to as a second direction, the helical gear is disposed on a first direction side relative to the first gear, the gear side pins are fixed to a side face on a second direction side of the second gear so as to protrude in the second direction, and the shaft side pin, the final gear and the lock member are disposed on a second direction side relative to the second gear.

6 . The card reader according to claim 2 , wherein
when one side in the thickness direction of the card is referred to as a third direction and the other side in the thickness direction of the card is referred to as a fourth direction, the motor is disposed so that the output shaft is protruded to a third direction side, and the prevention pawl is moved to a fourth direction side when the lock member is moved from the retreated position to the contact position.

7 . The card reader according to claim 6 , wherein
the first gear and the second gear are disposed on one side in the width direction of the card relative to the helical gear, the final gear and the lock member are disposed on the other side in the width direction of the card relative to the helical gear, and the output shaft, the first rotation shaft, the second rotation shaft, and the fixed shaft or the turnable shaft are disposed in this order in the conveying direction of the card.

8 . The card reader according to claim 1 , wherein
the card lock mechanism comprises:
a first side plate in a flat plate shape which structures one side face of the card lock mechanism in a width direction of the card which is perpendicular to a conveying direction of the card conveyed along the card conveying passage and a thickness direction of the card; and
a second side plate in a flat plate shape which structures the other side face of the card lock mechanism in the width direction of the card, and
the lock member and the power transmission mechanism are disposed between the first side plate and the second side plate in the width direction of the card.

9 . The card reader according to claim 8 , wherein
the power transmission mechanism comprises:
a worm gear comprising a screw gear fixed to an output shaft of the motor and a helical gear engaged with the screw gear;
a first rotation shaft to which the helical gear is fixed;
a first gear which is fixed to the first rotation shaft;
a second gear to which power from the first gear is transmitted;
a second rotation shaft which is disposed in parallel to the first rotation shaft and by which the second gear is relatively turnably held;
the final gear which is fixed to the second rotation shaft;
two gear side pins which are fixed to a side face of the second gear so as to protrude in an axial direction of the second rotation shaft; and
a shaft side pin which is fixed to the second rotation shaft so as to protrude to both sides in a radial direction of the second rotation shaft and to be capable of contacting with the two gear side pins,
wherein a pin clutch comprises the two gear side pins and the shaft side pin, wherein the motor is disposed so that the thickness direction of the card conveyed along the card conveying passage and an axial direction of the output shaft are parallel to each other, wherein the first rotation shaft and the second rotation shaft are disposed so that the width direction of the card is parallel to axial directions of the first rotation shaft and the second rotation shaft, wherein the card lock mechanism comprises a fixed shaft turnably holding the lock member or a turnable shaft turning together with the lock member, and wherein the lock member is turned with the fixed shaft or the turnable shaft as a center and is moved between the contact posi

Assignees

• Nidec Sankyo Corp

Inventors

• Kuwaki Hirofumi
• Takeda Hiroshige
• Miyazawa Shinya

Classifications

• G06K2207/1016

  Motor control or optical moving unit control · CPC title

• G06K7/0056

  housing of the card connector · CPC title

• G06K7/082

  using inductive or magnetic sensors · CPC title

• G06K13/0862 Primary

  the locking arrangement being of the rotate-slide and lock type, such as, e.g. common in mobile phones · CPC title

• G07D11/14

  Inlet or outlet ports · CPC title