Conveying direction switching apparatus and paper sheet handling apparatus

A paper sheet handling apparatus comprising:

• a holder configured to temporarily hold a received paper sheet;
• a cassette that stores therein the paper sheet that is held in the holder;
• a reject cassette that stores therein one or more paper sheets among paper sheets that are not appropriate to be stored in the cassette and paper sheets that are not appropriate to be output;
• a first conveying path that is located at a side of the cassette to which the paper sheet is conveyed;
• a second conveying path that is located at a side of the reject cassette;
• a third conveying path that forms a loop with the second conveying path;
• and
• a conveying direction switching apparatus that switches between conveying directions of the paper sheet at a joint portion of the first conveying path, the second conveying path, and the third conveying path, wherein
• the conveying direction switching apparatus includes:
• a first switching gate that switches between a first conveyance route connecting the first conveying path and the second conveying path and a second conveyance route connecting the first conveying path and the third conveying path,
• a second switching gate that switches between the first conveyance route and a third conveyance route connecting the second conveying path and the third conveying path, and
• a free gate that is arranged on a same shaft as the first switching gate such that a second conveyance route side is opened by an elastic body at a joint portion of the second conveyance route and the third conveyance route, and
• when conveying directions of the first conveying path and the second conveying path are opposite to each other, the first switching gate is switched to the second conveyance route side and the second switching gate is switched to a third conveyance route side.