Ticket accepting machines in particular for public transit system

Claim 1

In a tickets accepting machine of the type including an internal path for a received ticket and ticket validity detector means arranged adjacent said internal path and constructed and arranged to selectively accept or refuse the received ticket, an anti-fraud assembly comprising tickets cutting means positioned adjacent said internal path to engage every received ticket travelling along said internal path and cut the same, whereby the cut ticket is visibly mutilated and improper for re-use in a tickets accepting machine at least of said above type, ticket rejector means arranged downward relative to said internal path, and operatively connected to said ticket validity detector means to selectively reject a cut ticket in response to activation by said ticket validity detector means, a conveyor belt to transport said received ticket along said internal path, said cutting means including a rotary cutter extending into said internal path and aligned lengthwise thereof to completely severe a portion of said received ticket, a roller supporting said conveyor belt and provided with a circular peripheral groove, said rotary cutter extending edgewise into said groove to severe said received ticket upon travel of the latter against said roller, a pair of parallel levers pivotally mounted adjacent said roller about an axis extending parallel to the latter, a pivot joining the free end portions of said parallel levers, said rotary cutter being rotatably mounted on said pivot, ball bearings having outer races positioned on opposite sides of said rotary cutter and arranged to support the ticket undergoing cutting in engagement against said roller, and a spring connected to said parallel levers and arranged to bias said cutter towards engagement into the groove.