JPH08161625A - Commodity container for automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a commodity container in which lots of commodities are contained by increasing a stack height and each commodity is ejected surely and stably independently of the shape of the commodities. CONSTITUTION: Commodities are stacked and contained on an upper face of a commodity reception plate 17. In the case of ejection, after fall-down of a 2nd and succeeding commodities from the lowermost article is blocked by an article retainer 24, the article reception plate 17 takes a vertically pending posture to eject the lowermost article. A counter plate 37 and a depth face plate 38 are provided in the inside of the commodity container to allow a partition frame 7, the counter plate 37, the depth face plate 38 and an article support plate 34 to form an article container path close to a plane view shape of the article to be contained. Even in the case of a commodity whose width is narrower than the width of the container, the commodity is surely clamped by the commodity retainer 24 thereby avoiding ejection trouble independently of the size or the shape of the ejected commodity.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a product dispensing device for vending machines such as milk and soft drinks packed in containers such as paper packs, bottles and cans.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional product dispenser for a vending machine, there is a chain elevator type dispenser which sequentially rotates a pair of chains to dispense products on shelves mounted between the chains.

Further, in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 53-148696, the first and second movable storage stockers I can be freely moved in and out as shown in FIG.
Commodities II that are stacked by installing the unloading plates II ₁ and II ₂
Of the I ₁ , III ₂ ..., the first unloading plate II ₁ is pushed into the storage stocker I and the lowermost product III ₁ is pressed against the side wall IV on the opposite side, and the lowermost product III ₁ and above it. It supports the loads of all commodities III ₂ , III _3, ... When paying out the product III _1, as shown in the storage stocker I on the left side of the drawing, the second carry-out plate II ₂ projects and the second product III ₂ from the bottom is pressed against the side wall IV on the opposite side to obtain the product III ₂ . All products II stacked on it
The first unloading plate while supporting the load of I ₃ , III ₄ ...
II ₁ is retracted to deliver the product III _1, and when the dispensing is completed, the first delivery plate II ₁ is projected again and then the second delivery plate II ₂ is retracted, and the products III ₂ , III ₃ , III ₄ ...
Is descending.

In the conventional example shown in FIG. 8, the heights of the commodities III ₁ , III ₂ , ... Can be stored in the left and right storage stockers I, II must be the same.

[0005]

In the standby state [0005], the product III ₁ the lowermost as seen on the right side of the housing stocker I as shown in FIG. 8, the side walls of the first carry-out plate II ₁ is opposite IV
In a state pressed against the, for supporting all the loads of products that are stacked on it, if the weight per product one becomes heavy, first out plate II ₁ and the product A very large force acts on the abutting point of, and the product is damaged.

Therefore, when handling heavy goods,
Conventionally, there is a problem that it is necessary to operate the vehicle in a state where the height of stacked products is reduced and the number of stored products is small.
In addition, in this product dispensing device, the first unloading plate II ₁ is moved into and out of the storage stocker I so that the front end and the side wall of the _first unloading plate II ₁ are removed.
It is designed with the basic idea of controlling the payout of the bottom edge product III ₁ by narrowing or widening the passageway to and from the IV.Therefore, the bottom edge product III ₁ may depend on the shape of the product. Since it will be held in an inclined state, the posture of the product stacked on this product III ₁ is also unstable, and from this point as well, the stacking height of the product is lowered and the number of products accommodated is reduced. There is a problem that you have to drive in a small amount.

Further, in the conventional example shown in FIG. 8, products III ₁ , III ₂ , ... Can be stored in the left and right storage stockers I, II.
However, there is a problem in that different products having the same height but different shapes and sizes cannot be stored in the left and right storage stockers I and II.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a product storage chamber which can store a large amount of products by increasing the stacking height and can carry out reliably and stably without being influenced by the shape of the products. To do.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a product storage chamber in which a frame having a U-shaped cross section which constitutes a vertically long product stocker is provided in a vertical direction, and a partition frame having a rectangular cross section inside the frame. Is installed in the vertical direction to make a Y-shaped cross section and divides the product storage section in two, and the product receiving plate on which the bottommost product is placed at the bottom of the product storage section and the side of the second product from the bottom are pressed sideways. A product pressing plate is provided, and a drive unit for driving the product receiving plate and the product pressing plate is provided inside the partition frame to configure a product dispensing device, and at the location opposite to the product pressing plate in the product storage unit, A back plate provided with an opposing plate that is close to the product holding plate side apart from the U-shaped frame, and has a guide surface on the back side of the U-shaped frame and away from the U-shaped frame. And a product support plate that is long in the vertical direction is provided on the opposite side of the back plate for storage. And wherein the configuring the product storage path close to the plan view shape of the product.

[0010]

According to this structure, in the standby state, the products are stacked and stored on the upper surface of the product receiving plate. When the bottommost product is dispensed, the product pressing plate prevents the second or more products from the bottom from falling, and then the product receiving plate is switched to the hanging posture to dispense the bottommost product. Then, after the commodity support switches the commodity receiving plate to the horizontal posture, the regulation of dropping the commodity by the commodity pressing plate is released, and the commodity is dropped and supported on the commodity receiving plate.

A counter plate and a back plate are provided inside the product storage section, and the partition frame, the counter plate, the back plate, and the product support plate form a product storage path close to the plan view shape of the product to be stored. Even if the product is narrower than the part, it can be securely held by the product pressing plate.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An embodiment of the product storage room of the present invention is shown in FIG.
~ It demonstrates based on FIG. Reference numeral 1 denotes a vending machine main body, 2 denotes a front door, and 3 denotes a vending machine disposed on a receiving shelf 4 in the vending machine main body 1.
One stocker, two U-shaped frames 5 and two U-shaped frames 5 arranged in the center of each U-shaped frame 5, two in each U-shaped frame 5,
A partition frame 7 having a rectangular cross section that forms a total of four storage parts 6,
Inner wall 8 having an L-shaped cross section fixed to both side walls of the U-shaped frame 5
And an upper end frame 9 fixed to the upper ends of both U-shaped frames 5, and a lower end frame 10 fixed to the lower ends of both U-shaped frames 5. The inner wall 8 having an L-shaped cross section is composed of a counter plate 37 and a back plate 38 which will be described later.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a drive shaft which is inserted into each partition frame 7 and whose upper and lower ends are rotatably supported by bearings 12 of the upper end frame 9 and the lower end frame 10, and 13 and 14 are the lower end portion and the center of the partition frame 7. It is a commodity dispensing device provided in the section and is composed of the following items.

Reference numeral 15 is a semi-circular product support plate, and a boss portion 15A provided at the center of the arc is externally fitted to the drive shaft 11 and is pinned thereto. In the standby state, the product support plate 15 projects through the holes of the partition frame 7 into the two storage sections 6 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 7B.

Reference numeral 16 denotes a pair of support shafts, both ends of which are supported on the partition frame 7 directly above the product support plate 15, and 17 has a through hole at the base end rotatably fitted to each support shaft 16 and a tip end. The part is a product receiving plate placed on the product supporting plate 15, and on each receiving plate 17, products 18 in which a container made of paper and synthetic resin is filled with contents are stacked.

Reference numeral 19 is a pair of horizontal plates which are arranged in parallel in the partition frame 7 directly above the product receiving plate 17 and whose both ends are screwed to the partition frame 7. Reference numeral 20 denotes a pair of vertical plates each having both ends fixed to the horizontal plates 19 between the horizontal plates 19, and a total of four vertical plates, and a plurality of vertical plates (four in this embodiment) are arranged at appropriate intervals along the vertical line. A hole 21 is formed.

Reference numeral 22 designates a window formed in a portion surrounded by both horizontal plates 19 and both vertical plates 20 on both side walls of the partition frame 7, and 23.
Is a pair of support pins inserted into appropriate holes 21 of both vertical plates 21 whose both ends face each other.

Reference numeral 24 denotes a product pressing plate whose upper end hole is rotatably fitted to each support pin 23 and whose lower end bent portion is located in the window 22. Reference numeral 25 denotes a portion of the drive shaft 11 facing the product pressing plate. A plurality of (three in this embodiment) through holes formed at the same intervals as the holes 21 of the vertical plate 20.

Reference numeral 26 is a fan-shaped product holding cam provided to face the lower end bent portion of the product holding plate 24. The boss portion 26A provided at the base of the product holding cam is fitted onto the drive shaft 11 and an appropriate through hole 25 is formed. It is fixed to the drive shaft 11 by a pin 27 that is inserted into the drive shaft 11.

Reference numeral 28 denotes both vertical plates 20 whose both ends face each other.
A pair of connecting pins inserted into the holes 21 at the upper end of the connecting pin 28, and 29 are holes formed at the upper and lower sides of both side edge bent portions.
And a pair of first window closing plates fitted onto the respective support pins 23.

Reference numeral 30 is an operation hole closing plate for closing an operation hole 31 formed between both horizontal plates 19 on the front wall of the partition frame 7. Three
Reference numeral 2 is a drive motor arranged in the upper end frame 9 and includes a drive shaft 11
Is intermittently rotated in the direction of arrow A every 180 °.

Reference numeral 33 denotes a vertical shaft having upper and lower ends supported by the upper end frame 9 and the lower end frame 10 in front of both side walls of the U-shaped frame 5.
Reference numeral 4 is a product support plate whose base end hole is rotatably fitted on the vertical shaft 33, and its front end bent portion is a spring (not shown).
Are brought into contact with the products 18 stacked in the storage section 6.

The inner wall 8 having an L-shaped cross section is provided with a facing plate 37 which is separated from the U-shaped frame 5 at a position facing the product holding plate 24 and is close to the product holding plate 24 side, and the inner side of the U-shaped frame 5. The rear side plate 38 also has a guide surface on the side away from the U-shaped frame 5, and the inner wall 8 having an L-shaped cross section, the product support plate 34, and the partition frame 7 provide a plan view of the product to be stored. The product storage path 6a having a shape close to the shape is formed in the storage section 6.

A procedure for paying out the product 18 will be described based on the above configuration. First, in the standby state shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the products 18 are directly stacked on the respective product receiving plates 17 whose postures are horizontally controlled by the product supporting plates 15.

Each of the product pressing plates 24 has a product storage path 6a.
The product holding plate 24 is not in contact with the stacked products 18 since the product 18 is retracted from the above position. In this standby state,
When the user inserts a coin into the slot and presses a predetermined product selection button, the drive motor 3 selected by the command signal
2 is operated, and the drive shaft 11 is rotated in the direction of arrow A.

Then, the product holding cam 26 at the position (a) in FIG. 4 is also rotated in the same direction and hits the product holding plate 24 on the left side in FIG. 3, and when the cam 26 comes to the position (b), the product holding plate is pressed. The lower bent portion of the plate 24 is projected outward with the support pin 23 as a fulcrum, and the second product 18 from the bottom is shown.
It is regulated that the second product 18 from the bottom is pressed against the side surface of the product and is sandwiched between the lower end bent portion of the product pressing plate 24 and the facing plate 37 of the inner wall 8 and falls.

Further, a product support plate 15 as a product support.
6 also rotates integrally with the drive shaft 11 and rotates 90 ° as shown in FIGS.
6 escapes from under the product receiving plate 17 on the left side, and the product receiving plate 17 on the left side in FIG. 6 pivots downward with the support shaft 16 as a fulcrum into a hanging posture, and only the product 18 at the lowermost end is dispensed.

The product receiving plate 17 is switched from the horizontal position to the hanging position by controlling the product receiving plate 17 in the horizontal position until just before the product supporting plate 15 and the product receiving plate 17 are disengaged. Cage, product support plate 15 and product support plate 1
When the engagement with 7 is released, the load of the lowermost product to be paid out on the product receiving plate 17 is also applied, and the product receiving plate 17 switches its posture from the horizontal position to the drooping position at a stroke, Is certainly paid out.

The products 18 dispensed from the lower product dispenser 14 are guided to the chute 35 and dispensed to the product outlet 36. Further, the products 18 dispensed from the upper product dispensing device 13 are dropped onto the stacked products 18 supported by the lower product dispensing device 14.

When the drive shaft 11 further rotates beyond 90 °, the product receiving plate 17 in the hanging posture on the left side in FIG. 6 starts to be supported by the product supporting plate 15 again and returns to the horizontal posture, and the product receiving plate is returned. After 17 is returned to the horizontal posture, the cam 26 is separated from the product holding plate 24 on the left side in FIG. 6, and the lower end bent portion of the product holding plate 24 on the left side in FIG. The merchandise 18 and the merchandise 18 stacked thereon fall on the merchandise receiving plate 17.

Since the product receiving plate 17 in this case is in a horizontal position, the product can be stably received even when the number of stored products is large and the product stacking height is high.

When the drive shaft 11 rotates 180 °, that is, when the product holding cam 26 reaches the position (c) as shown in FIG. 7 (b), the operation of the drive motor 32 is stopped and the product dispensing devices 13, 14 are driven. Is in a standby state. Next, when the coin is again inserted into the insertion slot and the product selection button is pressed, the drive shaft 32 is moved in the direction of arrow A by the drive motor 32 as in the case described above.
The product 18 on the right side of FIG. 7 is dispensed after being rotated by 80 °.

As described above, the second product 18 from the bottom at the time of dispensing is securely held by the product holding plate 24 and the facing plate 37 of the inner wall 8 via the product holding cam 26 by the rotation of the drive shaft 11. , It is possible to reliably control the falling of the second or more products from the bottom, and even if the stacking height is high, the second or more products from the bottom will not drop or collapse, and the product will be paid out securely. The operation can be realized.

Further, since the product support plate 34 and the back plate 38 of the inner wall 8 are arranged on the front side and the rear end side of the product storage path 6a, the load collapse occurs even when the stacking height becomes high. Does not occur.

Therefore, by arranging the inner wall 8 and the product support plate 34 in the storage section 6 to form the product storage path 6a, even if the product is narrower than the storage section 6, the drive shaft 11 can be rotated. The product holding plate 24 is pushed by the product holding cam 26 through the product holding cam 26 so that the product holding plate 24 securely holds the product holding plate 24, and the carrying-out trouble does not occur depending on the size and shape of the product.

In the above embodiment, a relatively small product 18
Although the description has been made by taking the case of handling the product as an example, when handling the medium-sized product 18, the screw is removed and the operation hole closing plate 3 is removed.
0, then remove the support pin 23 and the connecting pin 28 to remove the first window closing plate 29 and the product holding plate 24,
Next, another window closing plate (not shown) having a height lower than that of the window closing plate 29 is inserted into the window 22, and the connecting pin 28 is inserted into the upper end hole and the holes 21 at the upper ends of both vertical plates 20. do it,
The upper portion of the window 22 is closed by another window closing plate, and then the upper end hole portion of the product pressing plate 24 and the lower end hole of another window closing plate and both vertical plates 2
If the support pin 23 is inserted into the second hole 21 from the top of 0, the product holding plate 24 is connected, and the lower end bent portion is opposed to the center of the side face of the second medium product 18 from the bottom. Good.

When a larger product 18 is to be handled, the support pin 23 is inserted into the upper end hole portion of the product holding plate 24 and the uppermost holes 21 of the vertical plates 20 to insert the product holding plate 2.
The height of 4 should be raised further.

Further, according to the configuration of the above embodiment, in the standby state, the bottom end of the product at the lowermost end is supported by the product support plate 15 via the product receiving plate 17. Therefore,
The contact area between the product and the product receiving plate 17 can be easily increased, and by receiving the total load of the stacked products on a wide surface, damage to the product due to concentration of the load can be avoided. Further, since the rotating product support plate 15 does not contact the product 18, the product support plate 15 has an excellent structure in which the product support plate 15 does not damage the product.

[0039]

As described above, according to the present invention, in the standby state, the lowermost product among the stacked products is stably supported by the product receiving plate, and the product is stably supported without being influenced by the shape of the product. The products at the lower end can be supported, and the stacking height of the products can be increased to increase the number of products to be stored, so that stable shipment can be executed.

Further, even if the product is narrower than the storage portion, it can be securely held by the product holding plate by using the facing plate, the back plate and the product support plate, and depending on the size and shape of the product. It has a highly reliable structure that does not cause any troubles during export.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic vertical sectional view of an automatic vending machine equipped with a product dispensing device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of a dispensing device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an IV-IV arrow view of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a view taken in the direction of arrows VV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view and a schematic transverse sectional view showing a payout procedure according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic vertical sectional view and a schematic horizontal sectional view showing a payout procedure of the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a vertical sectional view of a conventional product dispensing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 3 stocker 5 frame 6a product storage path 7 partition frame 11 drive shaft 13, 14 product dispensing device 15 product support plate 17 product receiving plate 24 product holding plate 26 product holding cam 27 pin 32 drive motor 34 product support plate 37 facing plate 38 back Face plate

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A frame (5) having a U-shaped cross section which constitutes a vertically long product stocker is provided in the vertical direction, and a partition frame (7) having a rectangular cross section is provided in the vertical direction inside the frame (5). A product receiving plate (17) that divides the product storage section into two sections with a Y-shaped cross section, and places the bottommost product on the bottom of the product storage section, and the product retainer that presses the side of the second product from the bottom to the side. The plate (24) is provided, and the product receiving plate (17) and the product holding plate (2
A drive unit for driving 4) is provided inside the partition frame (7) to form a product dispensing device, and the U-shaped frame is provided at a portion of the product storage unit facing the product holding plate (24). An opposing plate (37) is provided close to the product pressing plate (24) side away from (5), and the U-shaped frame (5) is provided on the back side of the U-shaped frame (5). ), A back surface plate (38) having a guide surface is provided, and a vertically long product support plate (34) is provided on the opposite side of the back surface plate (38) to store a product close to a plan view shape of a stored product. The product storage room of the vending machine that constitutes the route (6a). 2. The product storage room of the vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the product support plate (34) is elastically configured.