Imprinting unit for a dispensing device

Claim 2

A billing card imprinting device for a dispensing unit having a computer for totaling the sums of a transaction, said imprinting device comprising a frame, a plurality of side-by-side imprinting discs rotatably mounted on said frame and having indicia formed on the periphery thereof corresponding to indicia on said computer, mechanical drive means for rotating said discs so that the indicia imprinted on a billing card corresponds to the indicia on said computer, and solenoids mounted in a staggered quadrant relationship each including a reciprocating shaft movable between a drive position and a normal static position connected to associated ones of said drive means, and means connecting said solenoids to said computer so that the solenoids are energized to reciprocate to said drive position upon changing of the indicia on said computer and thereby to drive said mechanical drive means and rotate said imprinting discs to correspondingly change the indicia of the latter.

Claim 3

The invention as defined in claim l wherein said imprinting disks are rotatable about a common shaft mounted on said frame, and wherein said mechanical drive means includes ratchet wheels fixed to associated ones of said imprinting wheels and a driving pawl for turning said ratchet and thereby said imprinting to change the indicia.

Claim 4

The invention as defined in claim 2 wherein said pawl of each of said drive is mounted on a drive arm rotatable about said common shaft independently of said imprinting disks and wherein mechanical drive means includes lever means disposed between and connected to associated ones of said drive arm means and said solenoids.

Claim 5

A billing card imprinting device for a dispensing unit having a computer for totaling the sums of a transaction, said imprinting device comprising a frame, a plurality of side-by-side imprinting discs rotatably mounted on said frame and having indicia formed on the periphery thereof corresponding to indicia on said computer, mechanical drive means for rotating said discs so that the indicia imprinted on a billing card corresponds to the indicia on said computer, said imprinting discs are rotatable about a common shaft mounted on said frame, said mechanical drive means includes ratchet wheels fixed to associated ones of said imprinting wheels and a driving pawl For turning said ratchet and thereby said imprinting discs to change the indicia, said pawl of each of said drive means is mounted on a drive arm rotatable about said common shaft independently of said imprinting discs and wherein mechanical drive means includes lever means disposed between and connected to associated ones of said drive arm means and solenoids, solenoids each including a reciprocating shaft movable between a drive position and a normal static position connected to associated ones of said drive means, said lever means are turnably mounted on a second common shaft and said solenoids are disposed in staggered quadrant relationship thereabout, and means connecting said solenoids to said computer so that said solenoids are energized to reciprocate to said drive position upon changing of the indicia on said computer and thereby to drive said mechanical drive means and rotate said imprinting discs to correspondingly change the indicia of the latter.

Claim 6

A billing card imprinting device for a dispensing unit having a computer for totaling the sums of a transaction, said imprinting device comprising a frame, a plurality of side-by-side imprinting discs rotatably mounted on said frame and having indicia formed on the periphery thereof corresponding to indicia on said computer, mechanical drive means for rotating said discs so that the indicia imprinted on a billing card corresponds to the indicia on said computer, said imprinting discs are rotatable about a common shaft mounted on said frame, said mechanical drive means includes ratchet wheels fixed to associated ones of said imprinting wheels and a driving pawl For turning said ratchet and thereby said imprinting discs to change the indicia, said pawl of each of said drive means is mounted on a drive arm rotatable about said common shaft independently of said imprinting discs and wherein mechanical drive means includes lever means disposed between and connected to associated ones of said drive arm means and solenoids, solenoids each including a reciprocating shaft movable between a drive position and a normal static position connected to associated ones of said drive means, said lever means are turnably mounted on a second common shaft and said solenoids are disposed in staggered quadrant relationship thereabout, and means connecting said solenoids to said computer so that said solenoids are energized to reciprocate to said drive position upon changing of the indicia on said computer and thereby to drive said mechanical drive means and rotate said imprinting discs to correspondingly change the indicia of the latter.

Claim 7

The invention as defined in claim 4 wherein at least one of said levers is a crank arm, and another of said levers is a bellcrank of which one arm thereof is connected to an associated one of said drive levers and the other arm to an associated solenoid.

Claim 8

The invention as defined in claim 5 wherein said solenoids associated with said crank arm and said bellcrank are positioned at about 90* relative to each other in separate quadrants.

Claim 9

The invention as defined in claim 4 wherein said imprinting device includes four imprinting disks and associated ratchet wheels, pawls and drive arms, and wherein said levers arms are equal in number to said imprinting disks and include two crank arms and two bellcranks arranged alternately on said second common shaft.

Claim 10

The invention as defined in claim 7 wherein said solenoids associated with said crank arms are disposed so that the axis of reciprocatives of said shafts lies in a horizontal plane, and solenoids associated with said bellcranks are disposed so that axis of reciprocations of said shaft lies in a vertical plane.

Claim 11

In a dispensing unit, a reception area within said unit for occupancy of a data bearing card, an imprinting device to which a preselected limited face portion of a data bearing card is exposed while said card occupies said reception area, said imprinting device including a series of disks of uniform diameter, a shaft on which said disks are centrally mounted for rotation in fixed axially spaced apart paths about an axis in spaced parallel relation to said face portion of said card occupying said reception area, each disk having its peripheral edge circumferentially divided into indicia bearing increments, each disk having individual drive means for rotating said disk to sequentially present said indicia bearing increments opposite said limited face portion of a data bearing card in said reception area, said drive means including a plurality of spaced apart solenoid units positioned in staggered angular relationship with respect to each other and a linkage system connecting each of said solenoid units to a disk with which said drive means is associated, said solenoid units and said linkage system having their lines of travel confined to an area bounded by planes parallel to the paths of rotation of said disks and spaced apart a distance substantially corresponding to the axial dimension of the area occupied by said disks.

Claim 12

In a dispensing unit, a reception area within said unit for occupancy of a data bearing card, an imprinting device to which a preselected limited face portion of a data bearing card is exposed while said card occupies said reception area, said imprinting device including a series of disks of uniform diameter, a shaft on which said disks are centrally mounted for rotation in fixed axially spaced apart paths about an axis in spaced parallel relation to said face portion of said card occupying said reception area, each disk having its peripheral edge circumferentially divided into indicia bearing increments, each disk having individual drive means for rotating said disk to sequentially present said indicia bearing increments opposite said limited face portion of a data bearing card in said reception area, said drive means including a plurality of spaced apart solenoid units positioned in staggered angular relationship with respect to each other and a linkage system connecting each of said solenoid units to a disk with which said drive means is associated, said solenoid units and said linkage system having their lines of travel confined to an area bounded by planes parallel to the paths of rotation of said disks and spaced apart a distance substantially corresponding to the axial dimension of the area occupied by said disks.

Claim 13

The invention defined in claim 9 wherein means establishing said line of travel of said drive means includes a second shaft and said solenoid units occupy spaced-apart positions in staggered angular relationship about said shaft.