Ticket reader

Claim 1

In a system for processing tickets or the like comprising a stacker open at the bottom and having a plurality of walls for positioning a plurality of tickets or the like one on top of the other while not preventing the tickets or the like from freely falling therepast under the force of gravity, a movable carrier positioned below the open bottom of the stacker and having at least one recessed cavity in the top surface thereof positionable to receive a ticket or the like when the recessed cavity is moved below the open bottom of the stacker and said carrier top surface at all other times positioned below the open bottom of the stacker to support a stack of tickets or the like confined within the stacker and prevent them from falling out of said open stacker bottom and said stacker having a plurality of projections supported by the walls thereof and extending downwardly therefrom toward said top surface of said carrier to prevent tickets supported by said top surface of said carrier from moving with the top surface of said carrier away from the stack while at the same time permitting one ticket or the like to fall into and enter the recessed cavity when the recessed cavity is positioned below the open bottom of the stacker in virtue of the distance between each projection bottom and the top surface of said carrier relative to the thickness of said ticker or the like and means for moving the carrier with respect to the stacker to periodically position the recessed carrier with respect to the stacker to receive one ticket or the like and then periodically move the top surface of the carrier into position to support the stack of tickets or the like positioned within the stacker.