Differential speed coin sorter

A coin sorter, including:

• a body;
• a stationary coin-receiving means supported from said body;
• a shaft supported rotatably in said body;
• a coin pickup disk supported coaxially on said shaft, having first coin pockets along its periphery and having upper and lower surfaces, said shaft being positioned to cause said first coin pockets to pass through said coin-receiving means, said first coin pockets being sized to pick up individual ones of the coins in said coin-receiving means;
• a stationary, ring-shaped apron having upper and lower surfaces and supported from said said body coaxially with said shaft and adjacent to said pickup disk along the lower surface thereof;
• a circular spider having upper and lower surfaces and supported from said shaft coaxially with said coin pickup disk and adjacent the lower surface of said apron, said spider having openings along its periphery;
• a differential disk supported coaxially with said shaft and in relative rotational relationship therewith, said differential disk being adjacent said lower surface of said spider;
• said apron having an opening therethrough of width and length than the diameter of the largest of the coins to be sorted, whereby coins upon reaching said opening under the motivation of said pickup disk fall through said opening in sequence and are engaged by said spider on the edges of said coins and by said differential disk on one face of each thereof;
• coin-size discriminating means supported in proximity to the periphery of said differential disk, said discriminating means including exit apertures of respective widths and lengths related to the diameters of the respective coin types to be sorted;
• and
• driving means for driving said spider and said differential disks at different relative rotational speeds.