Receipt form handling system for automated banking machine

An automated banking machine apparatus comprising:

• a paper path, wherein paper moves along the paper path in a first direction, and wherein the paper path terminates at a delivery area, wherein paper is engaged to be removed from said delivery area;
• a printer, wherein the printer prints indicia on the paper;
• a drive, wherein the drive moves the paper by engaging the paper in the paper path;
• a cutter, wherein the cutter is selectively operative to cut the paper in the paper path;
• a sensor, wherein the sensor senses the paper at a location in the paper path, and wherein the delivery area is disposed in the first direction along the paper path from the drive, and wherein the location is disposed in an opposed direction along the paper path from the drive, and wherein the location is disposed from the drive along the paper path a first distance, and wherein the delivery area is disposed from the drive along the paper path a second distance, and wherein the first distance is at least as great as the second distance;
• a controller in operative connection with the sensor and cutter, wherein the controller is operative to cease operation of said cutter responsive to the sensor ceasing to sense paper at the location, wherein a continuous length of paper is always maintained in the paper path subsequent to operation of the cutter and prior to paper depletion, wherein the continuous length is enabled to extend the second distance from the drive to the delivery area.

An automated banking machine comprising:

• printing means for printing indicia on paper extending in a paper path, wherein the paper moves along the paper path;
• drive means for moving the paper in the paper path by engaging the paper, the drive means operative to move the paper toward a delivery area from which the paper is enabled to be removed, and wherein the delivery area is disposed along the paper path a distance from the drive means;
• cutting means for selectively cutting the paper in the paper path;
• sensing means for sensing the paper in the paper path;
• controller means for controlling the cutting means, wherein the controller means is in operative connection with the sensor means, and wherein the controller means is operative to control the cutting means to avoid cutting a length of paper in the paper path less than said distance.

A method for preventing production of paper form sheets from a printer in an automated banking machine that are too short to extend to a delivery area, comprising the steps of:

• printing indicia on paper extending in a paper path with a printer;
• moving the paper in the paper path toward a delivery area with a drive, the drive being engaged with the paper;
• sensing a length of paper remaining available in the paper path with a sensor;
• and alternatively either;
• cutting the paper with a cutter after printing the indicia responsive to the paper length sensed, wherein cutting is conducted when a continuous length of paper remaining in the paper path after such cutting is sufficient to extend from the drive to the delivery area;
• or
• refraining from cutting the paper with the cutter after printing the indicia responsive to the paper length sensed, wherein cutting is not conducted when the continuous length of paper remaining in the paper path after such cutting would be insufficient to extend from the drive to the delivery area.

A transaction conducting machine apparatus, comprising:

• a printer, wherein the printer is operative to print on paper indicia corresponding to a transaction conducted at the machine, and wherein the paper moves along a paper path in the machine;
• a drive, wherein the drive engages the paper at a position in the paper path and is operative to selectively move the paper in a downstream direction in the paper path toward a delivery area;
• a cutter selectively operative to cut the paper in the paper path, wherein the cutter is in an upstream direction along the paper path relative to the position where the paper is engaged by the drive;
• a sensor, wherein the sensor senses the paper at a location in the paper path, wherein the location is in the upstream direction along the paper path relative to the cutter;
• a controller in operative connection with the cutter and the sensor, wherein the controller is operative to cease operation of the cutter responsive to the sensor ceasing to sense paper at the location.

A method of preventing the cutting of paper form sheets in a transaction conducting machine, that are too short to extend to a delivery area, comprising the steps of:

• a) printing indicia corresponding to transactions conducted at the machine with a printer, wherein the indicia are printed on paper extending in a paper path;
• b) moving the paper in the paper path with a drive, wherein the drive engages the paper at a position in the paper path, and wherein the drive moves the paper in the paper path in a downstream direction from the printer toward a delivery area, and wherein the delivery area is a first distance in the downstream direction in the paper path from the position;
• c) cutting the paper with a cutter, the cutter positioned in the paper path in an upstream direction relative to the position where the drive engages the paper, wherein the cutting step is conducted responsive to the printing of the indicia on the paper corresponding to the transactions conducted at the machine;
• d) sensing the paper with a sensor at a location in the paper path in the upstream direction relative to both the cutter and the position where the drive engages the paper, and wherein the location is in the upstream direction along the paper path from the position a second distance, wherein the second distance is at least as great as the first distance;
• e) repeating steps (a) through (d) for as long as the paper is sensed at the location in the sensing step;
• f) discontinuing the cutting step when the paper is no longer sensed at the location in the sensing step.