Hands Free Change Dispenser

prusaprinters

<p>For small businesses that must use cash the cash itself is a potential fomite. This unit allows the cashier to give clean change, without touching it, to a customer who may accept it without touching anything else.</p> <p>It's not strictly hands free but hands do not touch.</p> <p>Suggested procedure for no touch cash handling:</p> <ul> <li>Ask the customer to drop cash into a pot or tray kept for the purpose.</li> <li>Count the money without touching it and calculate change.</li> <li>Tell the customer to hold their hands beneath the outlet chute and dispense the change.</li> <li>Remove any paper notes from the pot with tongs and put aside for cleaning later.</li> <li>Tip the coins and any plastic notes into a bucket of soapy water which destroys COVID19. Within a few minutes you may remove and dry the coins to restock the dispenser.</li> </ul> <p>Status<br/> Fully functioning beta.<br/> This has been tested with several hundred UK coins. I have very few Euro coins available so the Euro versions need more testing; I would very much appreciate a report from someone in the Eurozone. I have just a single US cent coin so the US version is untested, again a report would be valuable.</p> <p>The version in the photograph is an earlier beta, it was found to be too light and slid around the counter in use so the version posted here has screwdown points copied from another project - these are untested as installed. EDIT: Now tested, working well. Use 4mm/#8 screws.</p> <p>I apologise for supplying the project at such an early stage but, in the current circumstances, I believe that it is now ready for use and I am expecting to refine it in the light of reports from those who adopt it.</p> <h3>Print instructions</h3><p>Files</p> <p>The dispenser is supplied as pairs of print bed plates in the form 'changer_version_plate0.stl' and 'changer_version_plate1.stl'.<br/> Print both plates. I have done all my tests with a 0.4 nozzle at 0.20 layer height. No supports.</p> <p>If you need a different currency download and edit the OpenSCAD file.</p> <p>The source is a somewhat inelegant OpenSCAD file which offers a selection of change sets, more can be added if needed.<br/> Sets: Sterling : All current UK coins, this set is too wide to print on a PrusaMk3.<br/> Short Sterling : All current UK coins except the £2. This fits on a PrusaMk3<br/> Euro : All current Euro coins - reduce the value of 'sideallowance' to 1.5 to fit a Prusa Mk3.<br/> Short Euro : All current Euro coins wthout the 1c &amp; 2c - not used in some countries<br/> Short USA : The most used US coins.<br/> The OpenSCAD file offers other configurable parameters, the most useful is 'towerht' which sets the size of the coin stores. The current default is 100mm, it is not worth going much higher as stacks of more than 50 or so coins are too heavy and interfere with the mechanism.</p> <p>You will need</p> <p>4 4mm/#8 screws to fix the unit to the counter or to a heavy base.<br/> One very thin rubber band to act as the return spring for each denomination of coinage.</p> <p>Assembly</p> <p>First check the prints for blobs and strings, remove them. Take care to check inside the coin tubes and use a long handled file to remove any rough patches.</p> <p>Pre-assemble and check all is ok before gluing.</p> <p>Use cheap contact adhesive - cyanoacrilate superglue has too short a handling time for this assembly.</p> <p>Run a line of glue along the top of the base block between the mounting holes.<br/> Place the slider baseplate on top of the glue and gently wiggle it to spread the glue a little. Try to line up the holes.<br/> Drop the sliders into place between the guides; each is fitted to just one slot.</p> <p>Put a spot of glue onto each of the mounting pins on the coin tower, be sparing, excess glue will gum the workings.</p> <p>Carefully align the tower pins with the holes in the slider baseplate and through them into the holes on the base block.</p> <p>Gently push into place ensuring that all sliders are free to move then place a weight on top and leave to set.</p> <p>When all is dry, on each slider, loop a thin rubber band around the posts on either side and in front of the pushplate - use the thinnest bands you can find, these merely retract the slider after use.</p> <p>Now load in your coins and start giving change.</p>