Ticket processing terminal with a single-cylinder ticket advancing mechanism

Claim 2

A ticket processing terminal, comprising: a housing; a substantially cylindrical ticket guide in said housing; a single drive cylinder means conforming to and enclosed by said ticket guide for driving a ticket in said ticket guide in a revolutionary feeding direction in response to a drive signal; a first, entry port in said ticket guide for inserting an information-bearing ticket into said ticket guide in said feeding direction; a second, feed port in said ticket guide spaced from said entry port for feeding a ticket into said ticket guide in said feeding direction; reading and writing means adjacent said ticket guide for selectively reading or writing information on a ticket being driven in said feed direction; an exit port in said ticket guide for conducting a ticket from said ticket guide, said exit port displaced from said reading and writing means in said feeding direction; positionable diverter means conditioned by a positioning signal for moving to a first position to divert a ticket from said ticket guide to said exit port or to a secnd position to guide a ticket in said ticket guide past said exit port in said feeding direction; and terminal control means connected to said drive cylinder means, said diverter means, and said reading and writing means for providing said drive and positioning signals, said terminal control means including drive control means to generate said drive signal, reading and writing control means for operating said reading and writing means to read or write information on a ticket in said ticket guide, and diverter control means responsive to said drive control means and to said reading and writing control means for conditioning said positioning signal in sychronism with the reading and writing of a ticket being driven in said ticket guide.

Claim 3

The ticket advancing mechanism of claim 1 wherein said reading and writing means includes: a thermal printer; a bar code reader; and a mark-sense reader.

Claim 4

The ticket advancing mechanism of claim 1 wherein said drive control means includes an output sensor means for detecting the presence of a ticket in said exit port and for deactivating said drive signal in response to said detecting.

Claim 5

The ticket advancing mechanism of claim 1 wherein said reading and writing control means includes a print sensor means for detecting a ticket adjacent said reading and writing means and for selectively operating said reading and writing means to read or write in response to the presence of a ticket adjacent said reading and writing means.

Claim 6

The ticket advancing mechanism of claim 4 wherein said diverter control means responds to said reading and writing control means by conditioning said positioning signal to move said diverter means to said second position for a predetermined period of time when said reading and writing means is operated to read.

Claim 7

The ticket advancing mechanism of claim 5 wherein said diverter control means conditions said positioning signal to move said diverter means to said first position after said diverter means is in said second position for said predetermined period of time.

Claim 8

The ticket advancing mechanism of claim 1 wherein said drive means includes: a hollow drive cylinder rotatably disposed in said ticket guide; a rotary drive motor fixed to said housing and enclosed by said hollow drive cylinder, said rotary drive motor including a rotatable drive shaft; and mounting means for mounting said drive cylinder on said drive shaft.

Claim 9

The ticket advancing mechanism of claim 7 wherein said mounting means includes release means for releasably locking said drive cylinder to said drive shaft.

Claim 10

A ticket processing apparatus comprising: a housing; a substantially circular ticket guide in said housing; a single drive cylinder means conforming to and enclosed by said ticket guide for driving a ticket in said guide in a feeding direction; an entry port means for receiving an informationbearing ticket and for admitting a received ticket into said ticket guide in said feeding direction; feed port means for feeding a ticket into said ticket guide in said feeding direction; reading and writing means adjacent said ticket guide for reading information from a ticket received and admitted by said entry port means and for writing said information onto a ticket fed by said feed port means, said reading and writing means displaced from said feed port means in said feeding direction by a first arcuate distance; exit port means for conducting a ticket from said ticket guide, said exit port means displaced from said feed port means in said feeding direction by a second arcuate distance greater than said first arcuate distance; diverter means conditioned by a positioning signal for moving to a first position to divert a ticket from said ticket guide to said exit port means or to a second position to guide a ticket in said ticket guide past said exit port means in said feeding direction; and terminal control means connected to said entry port means, said drive cylinder means, said diverter means, and said reading and writing means for providing said drive and positioning signals, said terminal control means including: drive cylinder control means responsive to said entry port means and said exit port means for providing said drive signal between the time a first ticket is received in said entry port means and the time a second ticket is conducted through said exit port means; reading and writing control means for selectively operating said reading and writing means to read or write in response to the driving of tickets in said ticket guide; feed port control means for selectively causing said feed port means to feed a ticket; and diverter control means responsive to said drive control means and to said reading and writing control means for conditioning said positioning signal in synchronism with the reading and writing of tickets being driven in said ticket guide.

Claim 11

A ticket processing apparatus comprising: a housing; a substantially circular ticket guide in said housing; a single drive cylinder means conforming to and enclosed by said ticket guide for driving a ticket in said guide in a feeding direction; an entry port means for receiving an informationbearing ticket and for admitting a received ticket into said ticket guide in said feeding direction; feed port means for feeding a ticket into said ticket guide in said feeding direction; reading and writing means adjacent said ticket guide for reading information from a ticket received and admitted by said entry port means and for writing said information onto a ticket fed by said feed port means, said reading and writing means displaced from said feed port means in said feeding direction by a first arcuate distance; exit port means for conducting a ticket from said ticket guide, said exit port means displaced from said feed port means in said feeding direction by a second arcuate distance greater than said first arcuate distance; diverter means conditioned by a positioning signal for moving to a first position to divert a ticket from said ticket guide to said exit port means or to a second position to guide a ticket in said ticket guide past said exit port means in said feeding direction; and terminal control means connected to said entry port means, said drive cylinder means, said diverter means, and said reading and writing means for providing said drive and positioning signals, said terminal control means including: drive cylinder control means responsive to said entry port means and said exit port means for providing said drive signal between the time a first ticket is received in said entry port means and the time a second ticket is conducted through said exit port means; reading and writing control means for selectively operating said reading and writing means to read or write in response to the driving of tickets in said ticket guide; feed port control means for selectively causing said feed port means to feed a ticket; and diverter control means responsive to said drive control means and to said reading and writing control means for conditioning said positioning signal in synchronism with the reading and writing of tickets being driven in said ticket guide.

Claim 12

The ticket processing apparatus of claim 9 wherein said reading and writing means includes: a thermal printer; a bar code reader; and a mark-sense reader.

Claim 13

The ticket processing apparatus of claim 9 wherein said drive means includes: a hollow drive cylinder rotatably disposed in said ticket guide; a rotary drive motor fixed to said housing and extending into said hollow drive cylinder, said rotary drive motor including a rotatable drive shaft; and mounting means for rotatably mounting said drive cylinder on said drive shaft.

Claim 14

The ticket processing apparatus of claim 11 wherein said mounting means includes release means for releasably locking said drive cylinder to said drive shaft.

Claim 15

The ticket processing apparatus of claim 9 wherein said reading and writing control means includes a print sensor means for detecting a ticket adjacent said reading and writing means and for selectively operating said reading and writing means to read or write in response to the presence of a ticket adjacent said reading and writing means.

Claim 16

The ticket processing apparatus of claim 13 wherein said diverter control means responds to said reading and writing control means by conditioning said positioning signal to move said diverter means to said second position for a predetermined period of time when said reading and writing means is being operated to write and a ticket admitted through said entry port means is adjacent said reading and writing means.

Claim 17

The ticket processing apparatus of claim 14 wherein said reading and writing means is further for reading information on a ticket admitted through said entry port means.

Claim 18

The ticket processing apparatus of claim 15 wherein said diverter control means conditions said positioning signal to move said diverter means to said first position after said diverter means is in said second position for said predetermined period of time.