Abstract: A system for recognizing coin diameters and for computing the cumulative value of coins, including an arrangement for determining the velocity of the coins under free fall conditions by measuring (1) the time taken by a given coin to traverse a fixed distance, namely, a gap between the levels at which a first and second array of detectors are disposed; further including an arrangement for measuring (2) the time between a first event when the coin reaches, for example, said first level and a second event when the coin leaves the first level, the time interval between events being representative of the diameter of the coin; and additionally including an arrangement for computing the diameter from the two time measurements.