Laurel Bank Machines Company, Ltd.

Mituhiro Nagase

Tohru Nakajima

A pattern detecting apparatus having an irradiating means for emitting light and irradiating a surface of an object whose pattern is to be detected, and a light detecting means for detecting light reflected from the surface of or transmitted through the object, wherein a pattern on the surface of the object is detected based on information from the light detecting means is disclosed. The pattern detecting apparatus further comprises a light transmitting means for transmitting light advancing in a predetermined direction. The light transmitting means is positioned between the object and the light detecting means such that the predetermined direction coincides with the direction in which the reflected or transmitted light from the object advances.

Pattern detecting apparatus

A coin discriminating apparatus including a light source for irradiating the surface of a coin to be discriminated with light normal thereto, a plurality of optical fiber groups each including a plurality of optical fibers for guiding light reflected by the surface of the coin to be discriminated, each of the optical fibers disposed so that an imaginary extension of the center axis thereof passes through the center of the surface of the coin to be discriminated at a predetermined angle, the predetermined angle being different between different optical fiber groups, a plurality of photoelectric converters each facing an end portion of an associated one of the optical fiber groups further from the end portion facing the coin to be discriminated and being adapted for receiving the reflected light guided by the associated optical fiber group and converting it to an electrical signal proportional to the amount of the received light, and a discriminator for discriminating coins based upon the electrical signals generated by the plurality of photoelectric converters. The thus constituted apparatus can, with a simple structure, discriminate the denominations, genuineness and the like of coins by detecting coin surface unevenness.

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Tokyo, Japan

Mituhiro Nagase